


For The Future

by YuriSenpai



Category: Love Live! School Idol Project, Love Live! Sunshine!!
Genre: Amnesic!Mari, Angst, Cheating, F/F, Hurt/Comfort, Kinda futanari but not really, King! Kanan, Knight!Eli, Medieval-ish AU, Nozomi is here too but idk how to tag her role, Princess!Ruby, Queen!Dia, Romance, its a little slow at the start but I promise it’ll pick up, not that much sex, slowish burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-14
Updated: 2019-03-08
Packaged: 2019-05-07 03:38:56
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 16
Words: 45,449
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14662527
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/YuriSenpai/pseuds/YuriSenpai
Summary: Kanan is the young ruler of an unstable nation once ruined by their monarchy. Having taken the throne a year ago, she has already made her mark on the country, but she has one task in particular that she must complete in order to secure her position.However, things aren’t so easy. Things never are.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hey everyone! Thanks for joining me in this new work! When I originally got the idea for this I was so so excited and basically straight up went and wrote this opening chapter in two hours... 
> 
> Hope you enjoy the fic!

Blue hair falling loose from her usual pony tail, Kanan panted heavily as she stared down at the woman writhing beneath her. Her lips curled into a smile at the pleasant sight, she had never once grown bored of looking at the beautiful woman lay below her.

Completely exposed, her pale skin was slick with sweat and other fluids. Round, perky breasts with erect nipples were always a delight, so Kanan latched her hands on once again. Long legs wound themselves around Kanan's muscular form and pulled the two closer together.

She was beautiful. 

Dia's sharp emerald eyes glistened in the dimly lit chamber as she let out an exasperated moan. Her brown hair was splayed in all directions across the white sweat-soaked sheets that she clutched desperately. Kanan leaned in for a deep kiss, allowing Dia to moan into her.

She's close, Kanan noted, adjusting the angle at which she thrust into Dia as she pulled away from the kiss. A thin trial of saliva joined the two for a brief second before Dia jerked her head away suddenly. Walls clenched and pulsated around Kanan's length making her grunt and grit her teeth with glee.

Quietly, like usual, Dia hit her climax. To anyone other than Kanan, it would seem that Dia wasn’t even having her orgasm, but after being sexually intimate many times before, Kanan picked up all the small indicators; a slight frown, her legs stiffening before going slack, and of course Dia's now-swollen lips parting slightly. 

As Dia began to go limp after her climax, Kanan took the opportunity to bring herself over the edge. She would always try to get Dia there first, and secondly herself. 

A sudden jolt was felt in Kanan's lower half, and the hazy smile from Dia told Kanan that she had found her clit to play with. Mere seconds later Kanan erupted into her partner, coating her walls with white fluids. Her body went numb with extreme pleasure for a few seconds, before she lost feeling in her arms and lightly flopped forward so her head lay on Dia's moderate chest. Weakly humping, Kanan's hips carried out the orgasm and continued to pump her load into Dia while the latter attempted to get her breath back. 

Kanan moaned Dia's name desperately until she had been milked of every drop, then she too panted to catch her breath. Kanan couldn’t even find it in her to slide out of Dia, leaving them both tied together comfortably.

However, they both knew it was a matter of time before their romantic time would be interrupted.

Keeping her voice low, to prevent to witnesses from overhearing, Kanan leaned in towards Dia's ear.

“I love you.”

It was cheesy, but Kanan knew it was what Dia needed at that time.

Dia absolutely loathed being watched when she was in such a vulnerable position, but it was one of the cons of being the wife of the nations ruler, and there was nothing she could do about it. 

Kanan could see uncertainty alongside the heated blush on Dia's cheeks, and did her best to soothe her anxiousness by covering as much of Dia's body as she could with her own.

Sliding her now limp member from her partner, Kanan reached down and brought a sheet over the top of them in hopes of protecting them from the watchful eyes a little more. Dia shuffled uncomfortably as juices leaked out and under her, dampening the mattress.

“Keep still!” 

Their time was now over. The most senior of witnesses, an elderly man with wispy white hair and a bushy moustache, stood forward. He gestured to nearby servants waiting on, and they all came forward towards the recently intimate lovers. Kanan removed herself off Dia and proceeded to wrap herself in the dressing gown provided for her, but still lingering around. 

One of the servants pushed a cushion under Dia's soft butt, to keep her rear end angled higher, in hopes of a better chance at fertilisation. Other servants set about offering drinks and towels to Kanan, who gratefully accepted.

Dia wasn’t allowed anything except water until her half hour of lying still was up. No matter how many times it happened, she still hated it. Kanan tried to hang around until Dia was finished, so they could both shower and clean off together, but hardly five minutes into the thirty, she was called to her office. 

With a sigh, she resorted to quickly washing herself off in a tub to the side, before saying a quick goodbye to Dia and leaving the mating chambers. The extra part of her body she had sported a few minutes ago had now gone, leaving her pants looser and much more breathable.

Out of the watchful eye of Dia, Kanan broke into a frown and sighed heavily.

For the last year, she and Dia had desperately tried to conceive an heir without any luck. They had tried countless times, many under the watchful eyes of the witnesses, but then other times without their stares and in the comfort of their own bedroom. None had succeeded. Each time they had sent a pregnancy test off, the results had come back negative. 

Kanan had tried her hardest to hide her desire for conception from her wife, but it was getting to the point where Dia was becoming exceedingly doubtful of herself. 

They just weren’t compatible.

Of course, Kanan truly loved her, and she believed Dia felt the same, but Kanan was finally starting to crack under the urgent pressure for an heir to her lineage.

It was becoming exceedingly apparent that Dia was completely infertile, it seemed like the only explanation at that point. Of course, the knowledge was limited to very few within the palace, but one day Kanan would need to come forward and present her own heir to the rest of the kingdom to prove that one day she would be able to leave it in safe hands. 

Head pounding, Kanan thrust the doors to her study open, unsurprised to see a familiar purple haired maiden sat in her guest armchair.

Green eyes locked with Kanan emerald ones, and with a smile the subordinate greeted her ruler.

“Matsuura-san, good afternoon,” she said, her voice nasally, yet soft. Kanan nodded through slightly narrowed eyes.

“Nozomi,” she greeted and took her seat opposite the former.

For minutes, the two sat in silence. Nozomi shuffled her cards around and lay them out, carefully hesitating before finally selecting one.

“You knew, didn’t you?” Kanan broke the silence. The sudden change in atmosphere didn’t phase Nozomi at all, and she continued to lay her cards out.

“Please elaborate, Matsuura-san,” She said, pushing for Kanan to admit to herself before she would confirm it out loud.

Kanan gritted her teeth, but refused to get annoyed.

“You knew Dia was infertile, didn’t you?” 

Nozomi looked thoughtful for a second and then placed the card in her hand back on the deck upside down.

“How could I have possibly known?”

“Don’t play games Nozomi. You saw it in the cards or something.” Kanan stood up and marched towards her closest advisor.

Nozomi didn’t abstain from movement completely, but she didn’t go to pick up another card from her set laid out on the table. Her eyes turned towards Kanan.

“What if I had known? Would it have made a difference? Would you have left Dia for someone who could bear your children?” 

Although the questions struck Kanan very close to home, she didn’t step back but she didn’t retaliate either.

Despite her odd behaviour, Nozomi knew what she was doing. She was very highly respected among all throughout the kingdom, and well known in other lands too. As a practitioner of fortune telling and very knowledgable in other areas of political interest, Nozomi was quite the asset.

“I would never leave Dia...” Kanan whispered.

Nozomi returned to her cards once again, picking yet another one up. Kanan trudged back to her seat. Between her thumb and two fingers, Kanan massaged the bridge of her nose with an exhausted grunt.

“Your options are running out.” The purple haired maiden stated casually.

“I know,” Kanan answered. 

Her mind flickering back to a meeting earlier in the week, Kanan recalled the other options.

In theory, the simplest choice would be to divorce Dia chose another partner. In practice, it wasn’t that simple. As their marriage had been blessed, it would be exceedingly difficult to get the divorce she needed, and the slightest upset between the kingdom and the religion they held so sacredly would be enough to have her overthrown. Not only that, but she loved Dia. Kanan loved the brown haired beauty with all her heart and divorce was the last thing she wanted.

Her next option would be to adopt. This was unfavourable. To ensure a successor, Kanan needed someone with her bloodline, and the child needed to be legitimate. It was very important to her that she would be able to trust the kingdom to someone of her own blood. 

Another unfavourable option would be to take a mistress, and have her bear the baby. Not only did Kanan not like the idea of a child outside of her marriage, the thought of her becoming intimate with anyone other than Dia made her skin crawl. She only wanted Dia, and she knew that her wife would most certainly be upset if she discovered that Kanan would be sleeping with another woman.

Her final option would just be to have no successor and lesve the throne to nobody when she dies. That of course, wasn’t even an option for Kanan. The chances of being overthrown increased drastically when you had no successor, and the country would turn to shambles. Kanan couldn’t let her fathers hard work of rebuilding the nation go to waste.

She must have an heir.

Sighing heavily, Kanan leant back in her chair.

“I think you should take a mistress.” Nozomi said bluntly. 

Kanan flinched.

“Dia won’t like it... I can’t... do things like that with someone else...” 

“You don’t have a choice, Matsuura-san. You need an heir, Dia can’t give you one. If you take upon a mistress, as long as you perform the act in front of the witnesses, you will have yourself an heir.” Slapping her cards down again, Nozomi looked up to make a steady eye contact with Kanan. 

Kanan didn’t look away. Nozomi was right, but she really didn’t want to hurt Dia's feelings.

“Just think about it, okay?” Nozomi rose from her seat and walked around the back of Kanan. Once there, she began to rub her fingertips deeply into Kanan's shoulders. Kanan let out a deep breath of relief, succumbing the the glorious pressure being applied under Nozomi's skilful fingertips.

“You stink of sex,” Nozomi wrinkled her nose up and laughed a little. Kanan blushed.

“Hey! You’re the one who called me straight here... I didn’t have time to bathe or anything.” 

Kanan pouted and tossed her head away from Nozomi, who continued to grin widely and teased her ruler.

“Is there anything else you wanted to see me about? Or did you call me here just for me to think about what I'm going to do?” Kanan shrugged Nozomi off and turned to look at the rest of the paperwork on her desk. There was too much of it. Kanan inwardly groaned.

“Actually, there was one other thing.”

The sudden shift in Nozomi's tone drew Kanan in immediately.

“There have been rumours that the Sonoda heir wanted to arrange peace talks. It’s been said that her father is on his death bed, and she wants to begin setting up the kingdom for when she takes the throne. Which, will be very soon.” 

Gripping her jawline, Kanan pondered the thought.

With the Yazawa Clan on the rise, it might be better if she made alliances sooner, rather than later. 

“If such an offer comes around, I would be interested in peace talks. The Sonoda heir - Umi? - she is a talented strategist and has a lot of influence. Not only that, her partner is the 'She-Devil'.”

Nozomi nodded, jotting down a note within the pages of her journal.

“The she-devil is quite the power, so I’ve heard.” Nozomi said.

Kanan nodded. 

“It would do us good to not get on the wrong side of the Sonoda.”

There was a knock at the study door, Kanan quickly thrust her paperwork into the top drawer of her desk.

“Dia?” She questioned loudly.

The door opened slightly: Dia entered. Her dark brown hair was now braided and pinned up so it was off the sweaty nape of her neck. She wore a simple loose dress in a deep red colour and a pair of slippers. Dia locked her eyes with Kanan. 

“Can we shower please Kanan?” Dia's tired eyes said a lot more than her words. Kanan nodded and stood up. She still felt dirty despite having a quick wash in a tub straight after their session. 

“Wait for me in the bathhouse, I won’t be long.” 

Dia exited as fast as she had appeared. Keeping her voice quiet, Kanan leaned in to Nozomi. 

“Not a word to anyone about this, okay?” 

Kanan’s eyes burned with flames of intensity and her mouth was drawn into a straight line.

“Of course, Matsuura-san.” Nozomi said.

Turning quickly, Kanan left the room to follow in Dia's footsteps.

Nozomi turned her final card over.

Lifting it towards her face, she smiled slyly when she saw the results.

“Kanan... You sure have quite the opportunity arising...”


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! Thanks for joining me once again! Okay so I just got really excited by the positive feedback to my work and I wanted to start writing more chapters straight away, so here’s chapter two! Hope you enjoy it!

Settled in their large bed, Kanan and Dia snuggled close together. Despite their close proximity, Dia seemed especially distant; she continually stared into space and would lose track of Kanan speaking to her. This was unusual. Normally, after them having sex as a meaning of getting Dia pregnant, watched as per usual to confirm legitimacy, they would continue to make love throughout the night in their personal chambers as an extra security measure for helping conceive a child. Kanan would normally have to take multiple biles of drugs to get the artificially induced penis to remain for so long, but she didn’t mind since Dia was so willing. Of course, their efforts to impregnate Dia had not worked at all previously, but Kanan still had hope.

No response came from Dia even when Kanan gently began to massage her soft breasts, something her queen always enjoyed.

“Is something wrong?” Kanan asked. Her concerned eyes locked with Dia's, and they held there for a long minute before Dia pulled away from Kanan completely. Absent of Dia, Kanan's side became rather cold, so she tucked herself under the sheets even more.

“It’s nothing.”

Both women were incredibly stubborn. Gently pulling Dia's shoulder, Kanan turned her girlfriend round to face her with a comforting smile.

“Is this about my heir?” Kanan rubbed Dia's stomach smoothly, thinking the action would help reassure her worrying girlfriend. It in fact had the opposite effect.

Suddenly Dia pushed away form Kanan again, this time getting completely out of the bed.

“You know as well as I do. I’m not going to have your heir.”

Kanan's heart skipped a beat. Hurriedly she stood up next to Dia, the sheets falling and exposing her breasts.

“Dia, don’t speak like that. We still have time-“

Dia wheeled round on Kanan. Although her face was contorted into an angry expression with her eyebrows drawn in and lips curling into a snarl, her eyes had tears leaking from them and shone with sorrow. 

“But we don’t have time, do we?”

The room was deadly silent. Although Kanan wore the pants in their relationship, there were times she wouldn’t dare speak out against an upset Dia.

“I know you need an heir. I know the higher ups are pressuring you. I know that! I know it all!” 

The tears were falling rapidly now. Dia made no attempt to wipe them

“I can’t do it Kanan! I’ve tried so hard! I stick to the diets, I do the exercises they give me! I drink all those medications and juices they give me to enhance my fertility!” Dignity out the window, Dia was howling with rage and pain. Her nose was running as fast as her eyes while her hands clenched and unclenched at her side.

“I just can’t have children! I want to have them so desperately! But I can’t, and there’s nothing I can do about it!” 

With Dia loosing steam, Kanan stepped closer and pulled her distraught wife into an embrace. Sobs wracked Dia's whole body as she cried into the crook of Kanan's neck. 

The issue had clearly been eating away at Dia for a long time. While Kanan was glad the problem had finally been brought to the surface, she couldn’t help but wish Dia had said something sooner. It would’ve been nice to help her shoulder the burden.

“Dia, lets talk about this tomorrow. For now, just try to relax and get some sleep,” 

Kanan took the lead and brought Dia back over to their bed. Patting it gently, she encouraged the latter to crawl in and tucked her up. Kanan retreated back around to her side of the bed and slid inside. Immediately Dia latched on to her like toddler holding a puppy and cried silently.

Exhausted from her emotional outburst, Dia was asleep in minutes. Kanan, however, was not so lucky. After eventually falling asleep, she had a troubled nights rest.

Throughout the night, Kanan found herself waking up suddenly. Worried Dia might’ve disappeared, she had to pat down her side of the bed to make sure she was still there. Dia was always there, whether it be snuggled right up to Kanan or on the completely opposite side of the bed. 

Morning rolled around much faster than Kanan would’ve liked, leaving her sleep deprived and in a bad mood when murky sunlight filtered through the window.

It would only be a matter of time before the servants would begin to stir and arrive to wake the two up. Kanan rolled over, stretching her legs a little.

Today, she would have to confront Dia and tell her about the choices she had. 

Taking a sweeping glance at Dia's slightly puffy eyes, she felt herself wavering. 

Planting a simple kiss atop Dia's sweaty forehead, Kanan began to rouse herself and remove herself from the bed. Taking each limb separately, she stretched them out to hear a satisfying crack. Once ready, she stood up. Servants slowly filtered into the room, Kanan shook her head when they went to wake Dia. They respectfully left the sleeping queen and instead focused on dressing Kanan.

Getting dressed was always a long process. First would be all her under layers, like underwear and vests, then would come the actual clothing part of her attire: consisting on a pair of long navy pants, and a white shirt. She would often wear a waistcoat and either a thick cape or a jacket over the top of those. Her hair was brushed to perfection and tied neatly back into a high ponytail.

Giving herself a look in the mirror, Kanan nodded and was satisfied with her looks. Glancing down at Dia one last time, she left the bedroom and began her morning rounds by making her way to breakfast.

Without Dia's presence, the dinner table was rather empty. Kanan slowly helped herself to part of the grand breakfast laid out in front of her and chewed thoughtfully.

Dia's younger sister, Princess Ruby, was sitting part way down the table, enjoying a small conversation with one of the maids as she ate her breakfast.

Kanan’s busy schedule ruled her day… but perhaps Ruby would be able to spend her time with Dia? It was an idea Kanan was willing to try.

“Ruby,” she called softly. Ruby jumped slightly at the sound of her voice being called, and turned to face Kanan. She hopped up and respectfully bowed at the Ruler. Kanan blushed at the sudden display of affection and gestured for her to sit down, but a little closer.

“Do you have much planned for today, Princess?” Kanan's chairing, silky smooth voice never failed to make Ruby squirm.

“J-just my lessons in the afternoon...” she stuttered.

Kanan nodded in approval.

“Would you mind spending some time with Dia this morning, please?” Without waiting for an immediate answer, Kanan continued, “ I have a lot to do, but I want someone to stay with her because she isn’t feeling well.” 

Ruby nodded happily, a childish grin prominent on her face. It had been a while since she had spent time with her sister.

“Of course!” She chirped happily.

Kanan continued to eat her breakfast, a little slower than usual due to her being deep in thought.

The door to the dining room banged a little. Kanan didn’t turn around, expecting it to be Nozomi making her morning appearance but was surprised when a pair of arms rested across her shoulders.

“Good morning,” Kanan mumbled, hurriedly swallowing the food in her mouth.

“Morning,” Dia stifled a yawn and made her way to her seat next to Kanan. Form the corner of her eye, Kanan could see she still looked tired and her eyes were a little puffy and red, as if she had been crying again in the morning. Although Kanan wasn’t surprised to see Dia, she just wished that her exhausted lover would have rested a little longer.

Kanan slowed down her eating a little bit while Dia started her breakfast and watched her carefully.

Nozomi didn’t make an appearance throughout breakfast at all. It did happen sometimes, that the maiden didn’t show up for meals, but Kanan was particularly anxious about her whereabouts. They needed to have in depth conversations about the future of her and Dia’s marriage, as well as what she is going to do about her heir.

“Kanan?” Dia questioned, snapping Kanan out of her deep thinking. Smiling sweetly, Kanan turned back to her wife.

“Are you free this morning? I want to talk to you.” Dia said the last part softly, trying to avoid anyone else overhearing them.

Kanan shook her head guiltily.

“Me and Nozomi have some important things to cover which I need to have sent off soon. I can do this afternoon?” Kanan lied. She hoped her voice sounded even and that the lie was convincing.

“I can help with paperwork if it means you’ll be done faster.” Dia stated, pushing the food around on her plate. Kanan began to panic, she couldn’t exactly deny Dia’s help. Thinking fast, Kanan pulled Ruby into the situation.

“I was actually thinking you could help Ruby out for a few hours, and see if she needs any help with her studies. She mentioned she was struggling with languages. It’s mostly seal stamping this morning so there’s not a lot you would have been able to do anyway.”

Kanan held her breath. It seemed obvious she wanted to get rid of her now. Whether Dia noticed or not wasn’t given away in her attitude, and instead she simply agreed to helping Ruby.

Kanan sighed in relief. She had a little longer to discuss things with Nozomi now before addressing Dia.

Breakfast was soon over, and Kanan bid a temporary farewell to Dia before heading to her study. It became apparent that Nozomi was already there, for the curtains were wide open and light flooded the room.

Kanan closed the door behind her. Frowning, Kanan failed to locate Nozomi in her usual chair, and instead looked over the rest of the room. There were purple wisps of hair visible from the side of her desk.

At first Kanan thought that she was hurt or injured, but after spotting no signs of injury, she rolled her over.

Nozomi let out a snort.

She was just sleeping.

“Nozomi, wake up.” Kanan said loudly, pulling Nozomi into a sitting position.

Groggily, the purple haired maiden came to, and began to rub her eyes.

“Matsuura... sannnnnn” She wined. Nozomi cleared her eyes and made direct eye contact with her superior.

“Did you stay here all night? You’ve missed breakfast.” 

“Ahh... It’s okay, I'll grab something later.”

Nozomi suddenly stood up and straightened out the wrinkled in her clothing.

“More importantly, I’ve been up figuring out some things.”

Kanan rose from her kneeling position and gestured for Nozomi to sit in her usual armchair.

Kanan then sat back into her own chair.

“I think you’re going to have to take a mistress.” 

That’s as exactly what Kanan didn’t want to hear. Leaning forward rubbing her temples, Kanan sighed heavily.

“I can't Nozomi. I love Dia.” 

Nozomi silenced her with a look.

“I’ve been looking into your options. Taking a mistress from a noble family will also increase your influence in other areas and you will most definitely be supported.”

“Nozomi! Haven’t you ever been in love?!”

Nozomi hesitated at Kanan’s question, before shaking her head. Wishfully, she stared out the large window.

“I don’t have time for love. I have my work, and that’s all I need. You provide me with food, shelter and clothes. I don’t have a desire for anything else.”

Despite sounding so sure of herself, Kanan could see a slight bit of regret lacing Nozomi’s eyes.

The little information that Kanan knew about Nozomi wasn’t very helpful. All she knew was that she was from a country home, and her parents had died in a village raid. Since then, Nozomi had travelled from place to place, using her fortune telling skills to scam people and make money. Until she scammed Kanan herself, who immediately saw through what she was doing and brought her back to the palace, where Nozomi proved her worth.

That was it. Nozomi never talked about herself or what she did in her travelling time. She was entirely loyal to Kanan and nobody else, she had nothing else to be loyal to. 

Kanan was silent while Nozomi watched her thought train carefully.

“Moving on, I promise you I’ve considered all the other options. I’ve looked at all the possible outcomes, and I swear this one is the best way forward. It isn’t uncommon for rulers like yourself to take a mistress within their time.” Nozomi finished. Expecting an answer, she looked Kanan dead in the eyes.

Kanan put her head in her hands.

“Nozomi how am i going to tell her?! Oh yeah, by the way Dia I’m going to sleep with someone else because you can’t have my children!” Kanan shouted the last part, but instantly regretted it when she realised that it could’ve been overheard.

Nozomi smiled gently at the younger woman.

“You don’t have to tell her yet. Wait a few weeks first, until after she does the pregnancy test, then slowly break it to her that you really need an heir. I’ll start looking for someone to carry your child.”

Kanan was still unsure. 

“Seriously consider it, okay?” Nozomi directed. Kanan just nodded in despair. If her closet advisor was telling her to take a mistress, what choice did she have?

[LINEBREAK]

“Dia?” Kanan called out softly to her wife on the balcony. Dia turned her way slightly but not much. 

Mid-afternoon breezes brushed past the two while Kanan closed the gap between them and pressed herself up behind Dia. The position was comfortable, and the shape of the two of them just naturally fitted together, like they were made for each other. Dia leant back and Kanan wrapped her arms fully around her wife. 

“I love you.” Kanan states, a little bit more aggressive than she meant it to come out as. 

Dia pecked at Kanan's lips slightly restlessly, and rubbed the pair of hands that joined together over her stomach impatiently. Kanan pulled back from the kiss a little. Dia had been distant since their mating session, and while Kanan wanted to remake the distance between them, she could only do so if Dia wanted to bridge the gap. 

Kanan suddenly broke out into a cough and twisted away form Dia. In concern, Dia rubbed Kanan's back.

“Are you okay? You might be getting sick.” 

“I’m fine, just a tickle,” Kanan lied, hoping the recently established soreness in her throat would subdue. Dia wasn’t convinced.

“How was your morning with Ruby?” Bringing Ruby up almost guaranteed a reaction from a Dia, and it helped sway the conversation away from things she didn’t what to talk about.

“She’s doing good. Especially in languages,” Dia eyed Kanan up, and Kanan knew in that moment Dia knew she had been lying. 

Unspoken tension rose between the two, but neither pulled out of their embrace.

“Let’s speak inside.” Kanan decided, releasing Dia from the hug, but tugging her sleeve anxiously for her to follow.

Dia followed Kanan back inside their bedroom, where Kanan sat down on the side of the bed. Dia looked glum.

“Hey, I know you’re worrying about my heir. It will work this time, we’ve both tried so hard, it should definitely work,” 

Pulling Dia's shirt up, Kanan ran her cool fingers across Dia's stomach. 

“This is my last chance, isn’t it?” Dia's worried eyes locked with Kanan's, and the tension between the two melted away and was replaced with Dia's anxiety. 

“Don’t say that. I will always love you, no matter what. You have unlimited chances.” Kanan nuzzled Dia lovingly.

Lying back on the bed, they intertwined their legs.

With her head on Kanan’s chest, Dia let out a tired sigh.

“Did you not sleep well?” Kanan asked, surprised she didn’t notice the previous night as she was awake for most of it.

“I’m not sure, I don’t remember waking up, but this morning it was a struggle to get out of bed...”

Kanan shuffled a little, moving Dia so she was lay on top of Kanan; Kanan moved her arms around her lover and squeezed her perky butt.

“Kanan!” Dia scolded lightly, but didn’t make any other efforts to remove Kanan’s hands.

Kanan leaned in to nibble on Dia’s ear, earning a squeak from the latter. Kanan grinned softly. It had been a while since they had spent time together doing something that wasn’t paperwork. It was nice to just relax nice in a while. 

Amorous, Kanan pushed a little further with Dia, running her hands up and down Dia’s upper thigh. Layers of ruffles and lace stood between the King and her Queen, so Kanan began digging. Chuckling softly, Dia rose into a sitting position, her knees on either side of Kanan’s hips.

“Would you like me to remove a layer?” She whispered seductively. Kanan eagerly nodded. Dis dismounted Kanan and placed her feet on the floor to undress herself.

Coming up onto her elbows, Kanan admired Dia’s lithe body and long legs as she unzipped her ruffled skirt and let it drop. Layers of lace were revealed, and Dia set to work getting the petticoat off her body. Kanan was wholeheartedly enjoying the show, especially when she noticed a garter hugging Dia’s thigh.

“Frisky today, aren’t we Dia?” 

Dia blushed a little at Kanan’s teasing, but didn’t falter.

“As good as this little show is, you can’t starve me of all my fun...” 

Sitting up fully, Kanan brought her legs over the side of the bed and placed her hands firmly on Dia’s waist then tugged her wife in so she ended up between her legs.

Even when they weren’t being witnessed, Kanan would usually take control of the situation, she always felt as if she had a reputation to uphold an needed to prove her dominance with every second. 

Kanan placed a hand on Dia’s chest and gently massaged it. It was difficult finding Dia’s moderate chest under all the layers of ruffles and riches, but after some groping, Kanan identified the slightly raised lumps.

Dia tried to remove her scarlet blazer, but was stopped by Kanan. 

“Ill do it,” she promised quietly, and brought her hands up to pull the clothing from Dia. The blazer was quickly forgotten and abandoned on the floor. Next was the matching waistcoat, but with all the layers Kanan was growing impatient and tugged roughly at the fabric.

“Kanan-! You’re going to -“ Dia held her breath as two buttons were popped off and made a clatter on the floor. She sighed. The waistcoat was ditched too.

“At least let me take off my blouse, I’m my favourite and I don’t want it tearing.” Dia sounded firm this time; Kanan moved her arms down from Dia’s top half and instead teased Dia’s bare thighs.

Fumbling fingers clumsily undid the buttons, and Kanan knew that she was distracting her wife from undoing her shirt properly.

Growing quickly bored while waiting for Dia to finish removing her shirt, Kanan pushed a hand suddenly between Dia’s legs. Dia tensed up.

Kanan could feel the heat through Dia’s undergarments, and pressed more.

“Kanan...” Dia whispered. 

 

“Matsuura-san!”

Without warning, the door to the couple’s private quarters swung open, and a young servant rushed in, but stopped in her tracks when she saw the current situation. Her mouth hung open. 

Kanan stood and quickly pulled Dia into her arms, protecting her from the stare of the servant.

“Out! Now! I thought i made it clear that I did not want to be disturbed this afternoon!” Dia ducked deeper into Kanan as she shouted at the poor servant girl, who looked panic stricken and dropped to the floor to grovel.

“M-my deepest apologies M-Matsuura-s-san.. I was sent by Tojo-san. She said it’s a matter of utmost importance.” the servant said into the floor.

Annoyed with her advisor for disturbing her private time, Kanan grumbled as she released Dia.

“I’m coming now. Make sure you let Nozomi know that if this absolutely couldn’t wait until this evening, then I’m going to have her head.” 

While the servant certainly took Kanan seriously and scurried out of the room, Dia chuckled quietly.

“I don’t know what you find funny, you’re soaked.” To prove her point, Kanan thrust her knee back into Dias crotch.

With impeccable self-control, Dia smiled.

“I can wait.” 

“I should hope so. I’ll try and wrap this up as soon as I can.”

With one last kiss, Kanan straightened her outfit and left the room regrettably.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Any feedback or suggestions please leave below! Sorry this chapter was a bit of a filler chapter, but it needed to get out of there.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoy this chapter!

Making her way to the main hall once again, Kanan couldn’t help but feel some slight resent towards Nozomi. The purple haired maiden sure knew how to push her luck, especially since she was already pressuring Kanan to make a decision about her heir. Kanan had first gone to her study, expecting to find her advisor there, but instead there was a note left on the desk, telling her to go to the main chamber. This hinted to Kanan that they had company, and she had to double check that she didn’t look like she’d been pulled straight from the bedroom.

Taking a deep breath, Kanan pushed the door open and walked confidently into the hall. Nozomi was stood to the right of her throne, and servants were lined up on the left. In front of the throne, there was a troupe of knights. Kanan’s heart skipped a beat when she realised the armour they wielded was not that of her own knights.

Nozomi seemed nervous, and was shuffling her feet around anxiously. Kanan frowned, it was unlike Nozomi to be unsure about something.

Kanan hurried forward and stood in front of her throne. The second she came into eyesight of the knights, the leader immediately dropped into a respectful kneel, followed but the rest of them.

Kanan quickly glanced over them, and told them to stand. With a helmet in one hand, the leader of the group took a step forward and dipped her head respectfully.

Kanan noticed Nozomi visibly flinch at the sight of her, but the blonde knight did not react to that in any way.

“Matsuura-san, my name is Ayase Eli, I am a knight serving under the Sonoda Clan. I was sent here with an important message from Umi Sonoda-san.” 

She sounded confident, and didn’t seem the least bit fazed as she spoke with the ruler of the kingdom. Kanan's interest peaked as she heard the Sonoda name.

“You are permitted to speak freely.” Kanan ordered, and took a seat in her throne.

“We regret to inform you that our previous leader has passed, and thus Sonoda-san would like to offer you an agreement of peace and an alliance.”

Kanan eyed the other knights up, and remained thoughtful for a few seconds.

“Ayase, would you please join me in my study. I would like to know more of what this alliance entails.” Kanan stood form the throne, and everyone in the room bowed respectfully to her. She then beckoned to Nozomi.

Nozomi didn’t seem to react.

As Kanan walked past, she leaned to whisper in her ear slightly.

“Nozomi, study please.” 

Nozomi slowly reacted, and turned to follow Kanan, with Eli marching smartly behind her.

The walk to the office was quiet. There was tension between Nozomi and Eli, and whether the latter had noticed was a different matter. At the study, Eli was invited straight in. Nozomi headed to her usual armchair, whereas Eli stood in front of Kanan's desk, back straight and looking alert.

“Thank you for coming so far, Ayase.” Kanan began. The journey from the main Sonoda household took at least a day to get to by horse and carriage, “You, and your troops are welcome to refresh yourselves and we will serve you dinner, as our guests.”

“Thank you, Matsuura-san.” Eli dipped her head again.

“Please, pull a seat up.” 

Kanan pointed to another chair in the corner of the room. It wasn’t exactly as comfy as Nozomi's armchair, but it would do. Eli carried and placed it in front of Kanan's desk.

Eli tucked her hand into her armour, and pulled a scroll out.

“This is a personal letter regarding the alliance, my mistress sent this for you to read over. She has also requested that you visit her household within the week, to negotiate peace terms should you want to agree to them with us.”

Kanan took the scroll into her hands. It was rather weighty and rested nicely in her palms. She place sit to one side; Nozomi would be reading through it with her later.

“I will look over these with my advisor,” Kanan assured.

The meeting progressed smoothly. Eli addressed a few of the things Umi Sonoda would be expecting, and one of those was an exchange of the force of knights, only one platoon, in order to learn different ways and tactics.

This was one thing Kanan was unsure on, but Eli reassured her that Umi would most certainly take on board criticism of her conditions.

Realising the day was growing into knight, and that dinner was long gone, Kanan declared their personal meeting over. She hoped Nozomi had gotten something written down fro, the meeting despite looking so distant and far away for the whole time.

“You and your troops are welcome to stay for the night, or even a few days until I’m ready to travel.” Kanan said to Eli as they walked down the long walkway. Nozomi was dragging her feet behind them leaving Kanan wondering about her foul mood. She would have to confront her about it later. “I have one guest room you’re welcome to stay in, but the others will have to stay in the barracks. There is also room for your horses in the stables.”

Eli bowed her head.

“Thank you very much, Matsuura-San.” 

Kanan had reasoning behind wanting to split Eli form the remaining troops. The blonde was clearly the leader, and someone close to Umi - if the whole thing was just a trick, it would be much harder for Eli to give the commands form a different part of the palace. Of course Kanan had more guest rooms, she just didn’t want to show too much hospitality and come off weak.

“I will have the servants prepare the bedchamber for you.”

Kanan felt her stomach growling. She gritted her teeth and hoped it couldn’t be heard by the others. After her afternoon with Dia was interrupted, she had spent hours debating and talking with Eli about arrangements, so much so that it was hours overdue dinner time. 

The rest of the palace would probably be starving, as they were always under a duty to wait for Kanan. 

Entering the dinning hall, it became apparent everyone was waiting for her. The knights of the Sonoda clan were present at the end of the long table, away from where Kanan would be seated with her family. Dia had a sour expression on her face which only grew into a deeper frown when she saw Kanan coming towards the table.

Kanan had completely forgotten about her promise to Dia and nearly face palmed herself just thinking about her wife waiting for her to return.

Ruby was sat next to Dia, speaking softly to a dark haired girl dressed in the kitchen staff uniform that Kanan didn’t remember seeing before. The girl noticed Kanan coming but didn’t attempt to make any form of eye contact with Kanan, which was unusual for her servants.

Before she could dwell on the unusual girl for too long, her attention was drawn away to seating Eli.  
On Kanan's right hand side was where Nozomi would usually sit, and there was no empty space next to her. Kanan gestured for her two companions to take a seat, so Eli slid in right nets to Nozomi. Remaining stood, Kanan decided to give an apologetic speech.

“My apologies for the wait, but I would like to thank the knights of the Sonoda Clan for joining us, and bringing us the good news of a possible alliance. May you eat well.” Kanan raised her glass slightly and heard a cheer from down the table. She blushed slightly. It didn’t get any less embarrassing with all the attention being on her.

Servants began to bring out piping hot food, and lay it first in front of Kanan, and then secondly to the knights at the other side.

Kanan heartily tucked into the meat in front of her, ravenously tearing the chicken legs from the torso. She narrowed her eyes when the two women either side of her didn’t so as much enthusiasm about the food despite it being so long after the regular dinner time. 

Dia was picking at her food. There was a fair amount of fish and meat on the table, which wasn’t something she was keen on, and the servants seemed to have neglected a salad with her meal.

Nozomi was shoving her food around the plate too, not really eating much. 

Ruby, on the other hand, was piling her plate high and wolfing down everything she could. There were a few salad dressing present on the table, seemingly untouched by anyone except Ruby, who had one of each dolloped on her plate. She grinned happily when she saw Kanan looking at her, and Kanan grinned back.

Taking a tear of bread, Kanan dipped it fully in her soup. It was nice. The soup had a bit of an off aftertaste to it, but was nice when it first entered her mouth so Kanan took her spoon and hurriedly ate it then washed it down with a swig of her pitch of beer.

Satisfied with the warm feeling in her stomach, Kanan continued to eat. The meal progressed quick, for once Kanan had finished eating she got stuck into deep conversations with Eli about different sporting events and what the blonde enjoyed. They got on well.

Dinner took much longer than usual, as there was so many people there, but it was nice. The atmosphere was that of a party, which was something Kanan hadn’t yet had the chance to hold in the duration of her being the King.

It was on,y towards the end of the night, did things start going wrong.

“Ruby!?” Dia's voice broke the cheerful chatter of the room. Kanan's head jolted up to look at the young princess. Dia knocked her chair over as she stood suddenly and moved closer the redhead's side. Ruby had suddenly fallen forward, tears in her eyes. She was clutching her stomach and crying to Dia. A flash of realisation passed Kanan's mind.

Kanan jumped up, her eyes filled with anger.

“Nobody moves!” She shouted. The soldiers down at the end of the table were rising, but froze when they looked up towards the higher end of the table and more specifically, at Nozomi. Void of any expression, Nozomi stood behind Eli, a blade pressed to her throat.

Eli drew breath in sharply, and the knife dug a little deeper.

“If you move or shout, I will end you right here.” Nozomi whispered in a monotone voice. Although her threat sounded serious, Eli could feel the knife trembling against her throat.

Kanan moved round the table towards Ruby. Servants rushed forward and assisted Dia in lowering Ruby to the floor. Ruby was crying profusely and her white-knuckles hands were balled into fists.

While Dia frantically called for a doctor and some help, Kanan turned to one of her head soldiers.

“I want to entire castle secured. Get your men to check the stamps of all the people, every single person within the grounds.” Kanan turned to looked at the Sonoda clan forces. “Take the Sonoda soldiers to the barracks. I want them supervised at all times, but ensure your men do not lay a hand on them. Any knight who ignores this will be facing severe charges.”

While panicked, it was important for Kanan to make rational decisions. If the Sonoda clan were not guilty of this offence, then Kanan would be putting herself in a bad position if she were to attempt to Alliance herself with them so it was important that all their forces came out unharmed. 

“Ayase is staying with me. Give me your shackles.” 

The knight handed two shackles over. Kanan in turn passed them to Nozomi so she could set about locking them onto Eli. The latter did not resist in any way, and was very compliant with the monotone requests of the purple haired girl.

Kanan nodded in dismissal and the soldier bowed respectfully before hurrying off to perform his duties.

With cold eyes she stared down a Ruby, hardly believing somebody would dare attempt to poison the princess in the presence of the King.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Any feedback or suggestions are welcome!


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dia isn’t sure how much more she can take.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey all! Hope everyone’s has been doing good and I’m back with another chapter! Thanks for following the development of my works!

“Dia, it’s only food poisoning. An accident. Ruby will be fine.” Kanan called softly as the bed creaked next to her, signalling Dia was getting up. Dia froze, realising Kanan was still awake. It was the fourth time in the hour she had tried to sneak off to sit with Ruby.

“It’s okay, she’ll be fine in a day or two. Just get back into bed, please.” Rolling over, Kanan held out her arms to Dia. The dark haired queen took her hand gratefully and covered herself back up with a discontent sigh. 

Truthfully, Kanan just wanted to fall asleep. Alongside the stress of apologising to the Sonoda solders after the doctors diagnosed Ruby, Kanan was developing stomach pains and a splitting headache. She hissed in pain as Dia shuffled about, elbowing her accidentally in her painful stomach. 

“Kanan? What’s wrong?” 

Dia was concerned; it wasn’t like Kanan to be unwell.

“I have a few stomach pains, the meat I had at dinner must’ve disagreed with me,” Kanan hoped what she said was true. 

Dia lay back down, this time facing Kanan. The king squeezed her eyes closed as Dia's face spun around in front of her and the world tilted on its axis. Uneasy, Dia held up her bangs and pressed her forehead against Kanan's. She was hot and sweaty. In alarm Dia pulled back.

“We should get you to the medical wing right now.” Dia abruptly sat back up and got out of bed. She slid her feet into the red slippers and advanced around to Kanan's side of the bed.

Sweating buckets, Kanan was seemingly growing worse by the second. 

“Dia...” she whispered hazily, “ I don’t feel so good...” 

That was the icing on the cake for Dia. Kanan would never admit to feeling ill. 

Clumsily, Dia smacked the bell left next to Kanan's bed for emergencies. 

 

Within seconds there were multiple servants in the room. Dia stuttered and struggled to get the words out for what she meant, but her wild gestures towards Kanan proved to be enough. The state of the ruler was pitifully obvious, and slight panic arose. 

Dia's poor heart couldn’t take it. As Kanan moaned in distress and discomfort on the bed Dia stood over her with tears in her eyes.

“Whats up with her?” She cried out.

“I’ll fetch a doctor.” One of the servants said gravely, leaving the room.

Kanan felt her stomach lurch and rolled onto her side, gagging and retching. Dia softly caressed her lovers long blue hair and pulled it back out of her face. It was alarming. In the space of a mere few minutes Dia had witnessed a complete deterioration of Kanan.

Unable to stop herself from vomiting, Kanan's face was going blue in colour due to a lack of oxygen. The servants could barely do anything, and like Dia they just had to stand by and reassure their master.

Dia could feel her own heart starting to panic. She didn’t know what to do. Kanan might just die in front of her and she wouldn’t be able to do anything.

Kanan suddenly completely collapsed, her limbs sprawled out on the bed and in her vomit. It was not dignified in any way; contrasting the strong-willed and respected young woman seen earlier in the day.

The servants hurriedly set about sitting the unconscious Kanan up, while Dia was frozen in horror.

“G-get Nozomi...” she whispered. Her voice was hardly heard, but by some miracle one of the girls left Kanan's side and went to fetch the advisor.

The next half hour was just a blur for Dia. There was a lot of shouting, a lot of bodily fluids, a lot of crying and a lot of confusion. Somehow, she ended up over in the medical wing. Dia wasn’t sure how, but nobody would have carried her so she could only assume her two feet took her there.

Incredibly distressed, Dia paced up and down the room after finally snapping out of her dream-like daze.

First Ruby, now Kanan. She didn’t know how much more she could take and the situation seemed to be much worse than compared to Ruby's. The medical team were absolutely frantic, running back and to from the main treating room. Dia had been told that she needed to stay out of the room for now, but she would be allowed in to see Kanan once the medical staff had done their work.

Nozomi made an appearance, siding next to Dia. She also looked sleep deprived and unnerved by the situation, her purple hair was let down completely and ruffled from being lay in her bed. 

“Someone poisoned her.” Nozomi stated. Dia whipped her head round fast enough to give herself whiplash.

“What? How!?” Dia almost shouted, her face growing even more twisted with pain. Nozomi shook her head.

“I have soldiers interrogating the kitchen staff, but so far we have no leads. Everyone in there had the stamp...” Nozomi furrowed her brow. 

The stamp in question was the Matsuura stamp, a signifier that branded your loyalty to the Matsuura family. It was a small green tattoo with two orca's swimming around one another, both different sizes. The tattoos faded over time, but if you wanted to truly be rid of one the only way to completely annihilate it would be to cut the skin off, cover it with another tattoo or burn the skin so it was illegible.

Dia could feel the emotions budding up inside as she started to shake, her stomach dropping. Nozomi placed a gently hand on her bare shoulder.

“Kurosawa-san, you need to sleep.”

Dia shook her head. 

“Kanan needs me. What if-?!”

“Nothing is going to happen. Matsuura-san will be fine, but she isn’t going to be feeling great for the next few days so you will need to take charge. You must rest.” Nozomi kept a stern expression.

Dia was still unwilling despite seeing logic in Nozomi's argument.

“Or at least rest here. I’ll ask for someone to bring you some blankets.” 

Dia then nodded in agreement. Although she was protesting, all the anxiousness and stress from the night had been building up and wearing her down.

Mere minutes passed by and a blanket quickly arrived. It was thick and it would most definitely keep Dia warm. Servants in passing looked shocked to see the queen huddled on the floor and multiple kept trying to persuade her to some back to bed and get one rest.

Of course Dia refused.

Hours passed by a nothing happened. The sun was starting the rise through the glass windows and shining onto the floor near where Dia was lay wrapped up in her sheets.

Nozomi tried to keep her breathing steady and focus her mind. She never attempted to read her cards when she was stressed, but this situation called for some of her expertise. Hands shaking, she reached towards her deck that sat patiently by itself on the table. 

Nozomi pulled her hand back. She still wasn’t in the right state of mind. With a heavy sigh she slumped backwards in the wooden chair. Across from where Dia lay . She looked as if she was sleeping, which was what Nozomi hoped, but knowing Dia she would just be resting her eyes all the while being completely conscious. 

Nozomi’s prediction was right, when the door to the medical room was swung open and a tall lanky young man opened the door to peer at the waiting duo, Dia jumped up with amazing speed and desperately wobbled towards him.

“Kurosawa-san... we’ve tried our hardest and we believe we have most of the poison out. Some of it had already gotten through her system and we aren’t sure of the damages yet. It will take some time for her to recover before Matsuura-san feels one hundred percent better.”

Dia nodded while he talked, taking in all his words. 

“Can i see her?” She almost begged. The doctor nodded. Dia didn’t waste another second before bursting into the room.

Suddenly feeling a lot more confident Nozomi watched her go, this time reaching for her cards before following.

“Kanan?” Dia whispered, looking towards her lover lay on the bed.

Kanan was white and sweating like crazy. The two effects together made Kanan look as if she was almost a candle and she was melting. Her eyes were sunken deep into her head, causing Dia to be apprehensive.

“She probably wont wake up just yet. Her body needs some time to regenerate and recover,” The doctor told her. Dia fell to her knees next to Kanan and took her partners hand gently.

“It’ll be okay Kanan, I’m here don’t worry.” Dia said gently next to her lover's ear. Dia was becoming more and more distraught, but Nozomi didn’t feel as if she could control the situation - Dia didn’t listen to her like Kanan did. 

Slowly, she backed out of the room to gather her thoughts and prepare for the coming day.

With Dia and Kanan seemingly out of action, Nozomi would have to take charge. The first thing she did was ask the few medical staff and servants to keep the people who knew of Kanan's state to a minimum. The second any rumour of such weakness spread through the palace, they would be susceptible to an attack from one of the dominant clans who wanted the throne. 

Of course it wouldn’t be possible to sweep the issue under the rug completely- there was still the question of who had done it. The Sonoda's were an obvious suspect, but Nozomi found it difficult to believe they would’ve been able to access the kitchen and Kanan's food. It was more likely that the Sonoda's were set up.

There was somebody within Kanan's chambers who wanted her dead, and it was Nozomi's job to find out who. 

With a slow walk, Nozomi made her way down to the kitchen. While the Sonoda knights were the first suspect, the kitchen staff were the ones who prepared the food which would make them the last people to have contact with it before it was given to Kanan. Many of the kitchen staff had served the Matsuura's long before Kanan took the throne, some even before Kanan was born, so it would be an oddity if one of them had intended to poison her.

Pushing the door to the kitchen open, Nozomi was surprised to find it very empty. Then again, it was just past breakfast so they would probably be attending other chores. As she turned to leave, a sight caught her eye. 

In the far corner of the room, there was a dark haired girl with a bun to the side of her head knelt down on the floor, muttering to herself whilst hunched over something. Nozomi crept up silently behind her and peered over her shoulder. A crystal ball shone on the floor. The girl seemed to realise the presence of someone, and quickly solved the ball into her apron. 

“What... are you doing?” Nozomi ask through narrowed eyes. The girl straightened herself up and gave a forced smile.

“Just looking into the occult, seeing the future.... hahah....” she was clearly nervous.

Nozomi was alone, but she wasn’t scared. She knew she could take care of herself so she decided to confront this odd girl.

“Show me your stamp.”

Breathing suddenly becoming off, Nozomi sensed something was up with the younger girl, she was definitely suspicious.The girl froze, before slowly lifting her hand to show the green orcas. Nozomi grabbed the hand and examined the stamp closely.

She then licked it. 

The dark haired girl was frozen in shock as Nozomi had just outright licked her hand. 

The stamp had smudged. 

There was a long minute with the two just staring at each other. Nozomi's heart was thumping like crazy in her chest. 

In her hands, Nozomi had the guilty party in the poisoning of Kanan and she had no idea what she was going to do.

Nozomi was too slow in her actions and the girl jerked away. Instantly reaching for her again, Nozomi caught her by the fabric of her sleeve. The shirt tore, revealing a familiar crest on the lower arm belonging to the dark haired imposter.

The Yazawa crest, a symbol Nozomi was very familiar with.

Nozomi gave chase, all the while shouting and calling for help. 

Being the right hand man of the king was of course a privilege; the regular hearty meals were one of the things Nozomi liked the most about her position - but this in itself was a huge downfall as she had started to gain a noticeable amount of weight and become rather unfit.

Panting, Nozomi found herself falling further and further behind in the chase, although multiple sets of footsteps could be heard next to slowed down to a stumbling stop all while shouting at the guards.

“She’s a Yazawa! Catch her!” Nozomi called out breathlessly to the guards who stormed past. A flash of blonde hair zoomed past and Nozomi recognised Eli also giving the chase.

With another heavy pant, Nozomi could only hope they had managed to catch the imposter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Sorry if this chapter was a bit short and boring, next time I’m bringing the drama up a notch if all goes to plan! Any feedback please leave a comment or DM me! Thanks!


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dia and Nozomi take care of business within the palace while Kanan is out of action.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! Thanks so much to checking back in and I hope you enjoy this next chapter!

Two days had passed since the poisoning and with Kanan remaining unconscious, it was becoming harder to hide what had happened. Although more were becoming aware that the king was not present, Nozomi had managed to spread a convincing lie that Kanan had a simply stomach bug, and was worried about passing it on so she was confining herself. There were still only a few people within the palace that knew of the true state of affairs.

In Kanan's absence Nozomi had, of course, taken it upon herself to continue with the paperwork to be done with the help of Dia. Both were extremely competent in matters regarding paperwork so they knew they would be able to keep up in the wait for Kanan's recovery.

Sliding the parchment across the wooden desk, Dia frowned as she noticed a slight smudge with the ink. It would have to be redone.

After the first day, Dia had managed to pull herself together and found that she had no tears left to cry. The best thing she could do would be to busy herself so she wouldn’t have time to think about Kanan thus she joined Nozomi in Kanan's study and they set to work.

The Yazawa clan member had not been caught. After she had exited the palace, she had seemingly disappeared. Nozomi had ordered the knights to search the grounds and perimeter around the palace for hours without any luck. A crude drawing of the girl had been made, and she had been described to all the staff in hopes that if she returned she would be recognised.

A knock at the door startled the two women lost in their work and with a sigh Nozomi stood to answer it. Dia noticed the change in body language in Nozomi when the opened door revealed the Ayase knight stood there. The blonde had foregone armour that day, leaving her in a light blouse and a pair of black pants. Eli’s smiled awkwardly at Nozomi. The purple haired girl kept her face straight.

“May I please come in? I have something to discuss with the two of you.”

Nozomi and Dia shared a look. When Dia nodded, Nozomi invited her in.

Dia gestured for Eli to take a seat, so she did.

“It’s nearly the deadline for Sonoda-san's offer. I understand the situation you are in but my troops and myself have to set off tomorrow morning at the latest with an offer from you,” Eli said apologetically.

Dia nodded.

“I see. We do not need to attend with you do we? Surely we can send a parchment with our terms and go from there until Kanan is ready to travel?”

Eli hesitated for a second before regretfully shaking her head.

“Sonoda-san said she would prefer someone to attend in person, but would settle for parchment with Matsuura-san's signature and seal,”

All three girls fell quiet. With Kanan out for the count, the only way to confirm the alliance would be to send someone.

But who would go?

They certainly couldn’t send a servant with no clue of how things work.

Ruby couldn’t go, despite being very knowledgeable in politics and highly educated. Dia wouldn’t let her.

Nozomi turned to look at Dia, her mind heavily weighted. 

In her head, Nozomi knew Dia wouldn’t go. Firstly, Nozomi knew Kanan would be furious if someone had sent Dia to a foreign kingdom with only the protection of soldiers that weren’t her own. Kanan was extremely overprotective of her wife. Secondly, Dia wasn’t very keen about leaving the palace with Kanan out of action. She wanted to stay in case of things going wrong.

The only person left to go, was Nozomi.

Sighing, Nozomi knew her fate.

“Is there not a chance the deadline can be extended? Can you not wait a few extra days?” Nozomi almost pleaded.

Eli shook her head.

“If we aren’t back before the deadline, Sonoda-san said she would set the rest of the army to retrieve us under the impression we were in danger.”

Nozomi sucked her breath in suddenly. 

War would not be a good idea, but Nozomi was desperate not to go with the blonde and her troops.

“Me and Nozomi will discuss this. We will address you later, if you please, Ayase-san,” Dia interrupted the two's unspoken tension with her cuttingly sharp voice.

Eli dipped her dead respectfully.

“Thank you very much. I hope to hear a positive answer from you.” 

With that, she was gone. Only the faint smell of her perfume to remember her by.

Nozomi slumped in her chair, head in her hands.

“You will have to go, Nozomi.”

Knowing she couldn’t disobey an order, Nozomi gave an exasperated sigh.

“Of course.” She replied.

“What is with you and Ayase? You are very hostile towards her.” Dia put down her pen and made eye contact with Nozomi; she had her cornered.

“I knew her back in the past. It’s nothing special.”

“There clearly is something between you two, you’re always anxious and tense around her and it’s very noticeable.”

“It’s nothing.” Through gritted teeth Nozomi replied, “May I go and get some air?” 

Dia nodded, admitting a silent defeat.

“ I will also take a break. Please meet me back here in mid afternoon.”

Nozomi nodded but silently left the room, going to pack her belongings for the trip.

 

On her journey down to the medical wing, Dia had come across Ruby, finally beginning to feel better after her incident. Smiling, she dashed towards Dia - the servants accompanying her called out and warned her to take it steady. Despite being 16, Ruby was still treated like a child.

Dia smiled down.

“Are you feel better, Ruby?” 

“A lot better, thanks Dia...” she smiled, opening her arms for a hug. Dia pulled her in close and rested her head on her shoulder. The servants approached Dia and began to give her the full medical rundown, which was what Dia expected.

“Her stomach is still a little sensitive, so we just have to monitor meal times just to help keep things on track.” They explained. Dia nodded before speaking to Ruby once again.

“Good. You can still have a few days off from lessons, but then I expect you to be working hard once again!” 

Ruby nodded happily whilst promising her sister she would do her best.

“I’ll see you in a bit Ruby, I just have some things to do.”

Bidding farewell to one another, the two sisters went their separate ways. Dia couldn’t help feel a pang of pity towards her sister: she didn’t have anyone her own age to speak with or hang around with, she only really spoke to Dia and Kanan but tried to interact with some of the younger servants for a bit of fun. Of course, the servants tried to decline her invites as they had a lot of work to do, but somethings they caved in.

Quietly opening the door the the medical wing, Dia peered in.

Kanan was still asleep. A little colour had come back into her cheeks but her lips were still pale. A doctor was stood over her, checking her temperature.

“How is she?”

He looked around and gave Dia a small smile.

“She vomited again earlier, but she wasn’t fully conscious. We were lucky someone was around as she was lay on her back too. Since then we’ve not heard or seen any changes.” He explained. Dia's expression dropped a little. 

“I’ll stay here and keep watch for a bit.” Dia told him. Removing her shoes, she sat on the bed next to Kanan. The doctor nodded respectfully and left them together.

Talking softly to her unconscious lover, Dia lay down next to her and put and arm around her waist.

Shuffling around, Dia tried to make herself comfortable whilst laying next to Kanan on her infirmary bed. With all the layers she was wearing, the task proved particularly difficult but eventually she managed to find a comfortable position with her skirt hitched right up and exposing her whole right leg. 

“Me and Nozomi have been keeping things in check for you.” Dia's voice was hushed and tender as she had her one sided conversation. She didn’t know if Kanan could hear her or if she even knew she was there at all but it helped Dia feel a little better.

Burying her head into Kanan's hair would normally be a pleasurable experience, but Dia retracted her head when she was met with a sour smell. 

With a sigh Dia swung her legs back over the side of the bed and called for a doctor.

“Is there a problem, Ma’am?” He asked nervously as he entered the room. Dia gave him a dirty look.

“Why haven’t you been caring for Kanan properly?” Carefully running her fingers through Kanan's hair Dia prompted for a response, “she smells sickly. Bring me some warm water and towels now.”

Dia's voice was sharp and her glare unforgiving as some of the nurses hurried about bringing Dia what she requested.

With the tin bucket at her side and some layers between Kanan and her bed, Dia gently started to soak Kanan's hair in the warm water and used her fingers to comb vomit out all the while scowling at the staff around her.

Some of the nurses asked Dia if she wanted help and offered the services: Dia turned them down and asked for some of her personal servants to assist instead since she was still annoyed at the way they had treated Kanan in sickness.

After she was sure she had all Kanan's hair washed, Dia squeezed the excess water from it and quickly towelled it for a short while. When it was dry enough that Kanan wouldn’t catch a cold, Dia moved onto the rest of Kanan's body.

“Can you hold her up please?” She asked her servants, who gently lifted the king. Kanan's head lolled forward unnaturally and Dia frowned, “Please make sure she’s comfortable, I’m going to wipe her body down.”

Using a damp cloth, Dia carefully wiped the sweat from Kanan’s body - making sure to get into all the little nooks and crannies. Secretly, Dia was hoping for Kanan to wake in all the commotion, she instead remained fast asleep and occasionally let out a muffled snore.

The process was quick, as Dia wanted to minimise Kanan's of becoming even more ill, and she hurriedly towelled her wife dry with the help of her servants.

Satisfied, Dia lay Kanan back down. She nodded in thanks to her servants; they bowed and then retreated from the room. Dia shrugged a few of her layers off. It had become rather hot after giving Kanan a bed bath. Leaving herself in a long pair of undergarments and her blouse, Dia settled back on the bed next to the freshly cleaned Kanan and smiled gently to herself.

“You’ll wake up soon, won’t you Kan?” Dia mumbled as she closed her eyes and allowed darkness to take over.

Exhaustion overtook Dia, and she fell into a deep sleep.

When Dia next awoke, she was a little confused. It was dark outside which didn’t help to give her an indication of the time and there wasn’t much going on around her. Keeping one hand interlocked with Kanan's, Dia rubbed her blurry eyes. She recognised Nozomi's purple hair in front of her and she squinted to make out the rest of her face.

“Lady Dia, I'm about to set off with the Sonoda soldiers. I have a list of a few things me and Matsuura-san discussed briefly about the alliance.” Nozomi said in a monotone voice. She still was unhappy about having to go with the Ayase soldier, but she wouldn’t dare say anything out of line. 

Dia nodded and tried to pretend she was more awake than she felt.

“If you’re not back within five days, I will send our knights to come and retrieve you.” 

Which was code for they would attack the Sonoda's if it turned out to be a trap.

Nozomi nodded.

“Take care, and I will be back soon.” Nozomi bowed respectfully. 

“Be safe.” Dia warned, and nodded to her.

With that, Nozomi was gone. Of course, Nozomi had absolutely no intention of of staying five days stuck with a girl she despised.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!
> 
> One thing I just wanted to apologise for is for how stiff I sound when I reply to comments!! I’ve noticed I sound really odd and talk wayyyy too much when replying to comments so please ignore me if I sound awkward! On the subject of comments, thank you all so so much for leaving them! It honestly means so much to me that people like my work enough to leave feedback and respond! I try to reply to everyone but if I’ve missed you, sorry!
> 
> Secondly, I will be uploading the process of Nozomi's journey to the Sonoda kingdom and I was wondering what you all would prefer: a short multi chapter side story which will dig does into Nozomi's past and her relationship with Eli (as well as a lot of info on the Sonoda household and arrangements) or I’d if you’d just rather me have one or two chapters within this fic which will briefly brush over what happens?
> 
> I’m not sure myself, because both have upsides and downsides...
> 
> Anyways sorry for rambling! Thanks for reading and I’ll se should next time!


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ayyy I’m back again! Has it really been like two weeks since I last updated? This chapter was kinda hard to write and I got a little stuck along the way, that’s why it took so long. I, actually quite happy with the result but please let me know f you spot any mistakes because it’s 2AM when I’m posting this so I’m really tired and probably unable my own mistakes.
> 
> Thanks for reading!

Dia woke to a rather painful sensation down her left side. Confused, she rolled over. After finding herself face to face with her sleeping blue haired beauty, she then realised where she was. Her muddled thoughts attempted to place themselves together. She remembered seeing Nozomi at some point, but she had fallen straight back asleep afterwards and could barely remember what had happened.

Shuffling around, Dia managed to stretch the soreness from her side and tried to settle back down.

It was definitely day this time around. The thick curtains had been opened and sunlight had been allowed to enter the room, flooding it with brightness. Dia squinted her bleary eyes and tried to get herself used to the light. Almost sparkling in the newly discovered sunlight, Kanan lay still next to Dia. For a panicked second, the brunette thought she wasn’t breathing. 

Dia's heart leapt and she leaned right over Kanan. 

Kanan's chest rose and fell softly. 

Sighing in relief, Dia sat back on her heels. She felt hot and sticky. The blouse she had worn the previous night was definitely not meant for sleeping in and her long undergarments weren’t the most ideal either. Deciding she needed to wash up, Dia slowly slid off the bed. With one last longing look, she covered Kanan back up and placed a gentle kiss on her forehead.

“I won’t be long.” She promised quietly.

Yawning, she padded from the nursery and slowly made her way down the long halls. 

“My lady!” The shrill voice of one of Dia's servants made the queen jump slightly. She spun around to face her.

The servant bowed respectfully.

“My apologies, I didn’t mean to startle you!”

Dia tried to straighten her expression out and shook her head.

“It’s fine. What’s the mater?”

“We were just getting a little worried. We hadn’t seen you this morning and you weren’t in your room...”

Dia sighed, it was sometimes irritating when her servants seemed to want to know every aspect of her life, but there wasn’t much she could do about it - that’s why they were there after all.

“I’m fine: I just stayed the night in the infirmary. I’d like to go and prepare myself for the day. What time is breakfast?”

Dia continued her walk with the girl following behind her with light steps.

“B-breakfast...? My lady, I’m sorry but it’s already lunch time.”

Dia went silent for a moment. The servant assumed the worst and thought she was angry that she hadn’t been woken up, (Dia often went quiet before a furious outburst), but instead Dia was extremely surprised at herself. It wasn’t like her to sleep in so late. 

“I see. I’ll just hang on until lunch then.”

The servant let out the biggest sigh of relief Dia had ever heard.

“Would you like any help bathing or dressing today?” 

“I’ll have some help dressing please, but I would prefer to bathe alone. Please wait for me and I’ll let you know when I’m finished.” Dia nodded at the servant dismissively, who in turn bowed.

Dia was quick in the bath - she really didn’t want to miss lunch - but while she was in there she made a plan for the day. She would first have her lunch and have a quick chat with Ruby about her studies. Ruby should have been back in her lessons so Dia wanted to check how she was feeling and if she was catching up alright with everything that she missed. 

She planned next to try and get as much paperwork covered as possible. It would be much harder working by herself but it was important that it got done. Many things needed signing and sealing, although Dia's power was limited she would try her bets to sign certain things off. It was hard without Nozomi.

Finally, she wanted to spend some more time with Kanan. Dia sunk back into the water and submerged herself up to her shoulders and she thought about her partner. It wasn’t as if she depended on Kanan for everything, but Dia just needed her company. She loved to spend time with Kanan no matter what, whether it be doing paperwork, bathing, eating, relaxing... it didn’t matter. Just being together was enough. 

Kanan was Dia,s emotional rock. Dia liked to think she was independent and could manage things herself. But the reality was that Dia craved company and always fretted when by herself.

Dia shook her head to try and rid herself of those thoughts. She refused to let herself be dragged down to the dark place she had once been in. 

'The heat is getting to my head' Dia thought to herself and decided to get out. 

She stood from the bath much too suddenly, and her head whirled. Dia was thrown off balance, her sudden vertigo had completely upset her senses. 

The room slipped sideways and Dia felt herself falling. In a desperate attempt to steady herself, she reached to grab a shelf to her left which held some cleaning necessities. Of course, the tiny shelf wouldn't have been able to hold her and it too came toppling down with Dia, al the contents landing atop of the dark haired girl

A sickening thud along with a clatter could be heard when Dia hit the floor. She felt her head bounce off the stone tiles and she felt immediate pain across the right side of her body. Bottles and soaps for, the shelf hit her back.

Dia let out a low moan of pain.

“My lady!?” The door to the bath opened immediately and a worried servant bustled in. Dia could hardly grunt an answer as the servant gave a shocked gasp. Dropping to her knees the servant instantly began to move the shelf off Dia and tossed the miscellaneous junk to the side. 

Dia felt her vision blurring as she tried to focus on what was going on. Her head was tickling a little. Reaching up to scratch it, Dia discovered that it was damp and sticky.

Withdrawing her hand she found red blood on it.

“You’re bleeding! Please stay still, I will call for some assistance.”

Naked and humiliated, Dia could do nothing but lie on the cold floor in wait for help to come. The sudden impact had left her winded and breathless. She didn’t feel like attempting to move.

It felt like hours before someone returned to help her. By this point, she could identify a fair amount of blood trickling down her face. It was in her eyes, so she squeezed them shut. It was in her mouth, but no matter how tightly she pressed her lips together the metallic taste still stung her tongue. 

A damp cloth was pressed to her head.

Dia opened her eyes slowly. Kind eyes looked back at her.

“Don’t worry about a thing, your highness, we will have you fixed up in no time.”

After having her face pressed against the floor for at least 20 minutes, Dia was finally sat up. A towel was draped over her body and she wrapped it tightly. The right side of her body had taken the brunt of the blow to the floor and was black and blue all over. After cleaning Dia's forehead, the nurse began to bandage it.

“Let me know if the bandage is too tight.” 

Dia hummed under her breath in response.

“We're not having much luck as of late, are we? First the King and Miss Ruby and now you... however, we are fortunate that you have only suffered one major injury. A fall of this floor could kill.” 

“My body hurts enough for it to be ten major injuries...” Dia complained while the nurse laughed.

“The bruising should clear up in one to two weeks. Just make sure you take it easy, okay?”

Dia nodded.

“Are you feeling better now? We can stay and sit around for a bit longer if you’d like.”

Dia considered it, and just felt like having a time out from everything. However, she was shivering because she hadn’t had chance to dry off properly and her hair was still damp.

“No I’m fine.”

So far, Dia's day had not gone to plan. First her fall in the bath, secondly she had missed Ruby at lunch due to said fall, but now she wanted to finally get something done. 

After picking a her lunch, she was now settled in Kanan's study. The stack of papers to be signed had seemingly grown from since she had last seen them, which was to be expected. 

Slowly but surely, she began to work her way through them. One by one, she organised the papers into those she knew she would be allowed to sign off, and those that only Kanan would be able to give permission for. Unfortunately for Kanan, there seemed an awful lot more once pile than Dia's, but it couldn’t be helped.

Nonetheless, there was still a massive stack of paper for Dia to handle.

With her quill in one hand and the other flattened on the table, she set to work.

Unlike Kanan, who sometimes took shortcuts in her work, Dia would read every single word and make sure she fully understood what was going on. This process took her much longer to complete the work, but it helped settle any anxiety she would’ve felt in case of signing something wrong.

Hours passed like this, and soon she was nearly the bottom of the stack. 

Inside her, Dia felt a small triumph. All the work she had accomplished would make it so much easier for Kanan once she was fit and and ready to return. Her heart was lifted, and Dia felt it was an afternoon well spent.

Stretching her bruised arms out, Dia reached forward heard a satisfying crack. Her afternoon of work was finished. She could finally take the time to go and see Ruby. 

In her excitement to hurry out of the prison, she hurriedly stuffed the quill back in the ink, a little forcefully. This action resulted in the ink pot, ever so slowly toppling over. Dia lunged forward, trying to desperately stop the spread of ink.

She knocked the stack of papers for Kanan off the desk in an attempt to save them from the small flood. They flew up everywhere, flying around the room like confetti. 

The papers Dia had spent all afternoon signing, dating, stamping and reading.... were not so fortunate...

Over half the stack had soaked up the Ink as it puddled around them. The top ones had splatters from the splash back of the ink and it looked as if it has soaked through.

Slowly, Dia stood the ink pot upright. 

She let go of it.

For she knew if she didn’t, she would probably smash it.

She inhaled.

Dia then let out an almighty scream of rage.

Such a scream lasted several moments, before Dia slowly sank to the floor alongside the newly furnished carpet of paper. 

Of course, the screams sent people running.

Most were expecting an intruder with a knife to Dia's throat.

Instead, they were greeted with the Queen crouched on the floor, staring blankly at the mess before them.

“I'm going for some air.” Dia announced, suddenly standing up. The servants nodded, but did not make a move.

“Someone please get this tidied up.”

Aching and throbbing with pain, Dia stumbled down the hallways, trying to desperately remember where Ruby would be.

She wasn’t in the dining room, study room or even her bedroom. Dia wracked her places to where her sister could be. The only thing Dia wanted at that second, was Ruby's companionship. 

Dia then suddenly had a brainwave.

Trying to enter unnoticed, Dia pushed the library door open slightly. In the corner, she could just about make out two pigtails in the corner of the room. It seemed like Ruby. As she attempted to get a better look, the door creaked open and Dia stumbled ungracefully forward. Ruby jumped slightly at the noise, then spun around anxiously. 

Dia smiled awkwardly and she straighten herself back up again and Ruby visibly relaxed when she saw her older sister.

“Dia!” She exclaimed excitedly and stood up. In her haste, she accidentally knocked her chair backwards and scattered her papers across the floor earning a gasp from her tutor.

“Ruby! Watch out! You nearly knocked your ink over your work...!” The tutor hurriedly started to move the ink away from the sheets. Dia flinched slightly, remembering her mistake from earlier in the day and the mess she still had to clean up in Kanan's office.

Ruby gave an awkward sidewards glance but continued to head for Dia. Instead of hugging her sister, Ruby gave an unbalanced curtsey.

Dia smiled, uneasily, but stepped forward and hugged her sister anyway. With stress built up, she needed to let it out someone where. Ruby let out a surprised yelp as she was suddenly pulled into a hug, but accepted her sister with open arms.

Ruby wrapped her arms tightly around her sisters back and rested her head on her shoulder. She smiled as she drew in Dia's scent, it was both sharp and soft but incredibly comfortable. The hug seemed to go on for longer than usual, which brought to Ruby’s attention the fact that Dia was shaking. 

“Dia?” She whispered gently in her sister’s ear. Dia didn’t move and remained with her head pressed into Ruby's shoulder. When Dia didn’t answer, Ruby tried to gesture for her tutor to leave them two alone. Somehow, the tutor read the extremely strange and unique gestures and quickly took her leave, being sure to close the door behind her.

Only once the room was empty did Dia detach herself form Ruby.

Her cheeks were red and flushed with tears dripping down them. Ruby found herself frozen.

Dia never cried. 

Or at least not where Ruby could see her.

“I’m sorry, Ruby... I don’t know what has come over me...” Dia sobbed, trying to hide her face in her hands, muffling her cries.

Ruby was unsure of what to do.

The last time she had seen Dia in such a state, was a long long time ago, back when the two of them were lost...

Ruby shook her head, trying to banish those thoughts of their past away and instead focused on the currently situation.

“It’s okay...” A certain maturity crept into Ruby’s voice, one she didn’t know she had.

“Just sit down a minute, it’ll be okay...” Ruby tried to steer Dia in the direction of a table and chair, which as difficult given that Dia was sobbing to hard to focus on her movements. 

“Dia, please speak to me.” Ruby pleaded, before adding softly, “You keep a lot of emotions bottled up, I know you do...”

This only caused Dia’s weeping to worsen, leaving the dark haired queen loosing her breath and gasping between tearful cries.

Ruby eventually got her to sit down, and then hugged her sister again. With Dia sitting down, Ruby was the taller one and their hug left Dia’s head hugged into her stomach and chest. It would’ve been a nice moment if Dia still wasn’t trembling and letting out ugly sobs. 

The next time Dia inhaled suddenly, she was enveloped with Ruby’s soft scent. The world had darkened around her,a nd she felt immediately relaxed. She was free from responsibility and stress.

It was extremely relieving for Ruby when Dia finally stopped convulsing and whimpering beneath her. She removed her arms from Dia’s head and shoulders and looked down at her sister. Dia’s face was even more red than before and her eyes appeared bloodshot and irritated.

Ruby wiped her sister's tears away softly.

Dia's tired eyes watched her every move.

“You should sleep, you need to sleep all this off.” Ruby said quietly. 

Ruby had always been the weak one. 

It was always Ruby that was trailing round after Dia, living in her shadow. Ruby was the one that needed protecting all the time because she was smaller and 'helpless'. Ruby was always getting ill, leaving Dia to look after her.

But for once, Ruby finally felt different.

And she liked it.

After Dia agreeing, Ruby tried to take her back to bed. Dia refused, despite badly wanting to sleep, so Ruby tried to compromise and have her sister sleep in the infirmary with Kanan.

Dia agreed, somehow, and that’s where she ended up for the afternoon.

“Sharing a bed this small isn’t exactly ideal” Dia thought sleepily to herself as she tugged the sheets a little in her direction. There was a muffled groan from Kanan. Dia sat up immediately.

Looking over, Dia peered down onto Kanan's sweaty face in alarm and hope that everything was okay. Dia's heart skipped a beat when Kanan let out another low moan again - she sounded like she was in pain. Dia scrambled to the edge of the bed, nearly falling off in her desperation to get some help.

A soft hand took Dia's. It was weak and shaky, but still determined.

“..Dia...” the hoarse whisper came. 

Never before had Dia moved faster as she whipped round and shot back onto the bed.

“Kanan... oh my god...” she whispered, cradling her lover's head in her arms. Kanan's violet eyes locked into her own and Dia felt a sudden rush of emotions.

Her heart raced in her chest while her own hands trembled. It has been a long time since Dia had felt such raw, vivid emotions that weren’t fear or anything negative and while it was a nice feeling, it was also quite shocking. Dia could feel herself shaking uncontrollably as Kanan smiled up at her with a sleepy expression.

“Hey... it’s okay...” 

Kanan's voice was strained and through her emotional breakdown, Dia could tell it was hurting her a lot to talk. As Dia weeped, Kanan patted her warmly on the back as she licked her lips in an attempt to moisten them.

“Dia, please...can you get me some water...” Kanan muttered with a forced smile. Dia nodded and pulled herself off the bed, running to fetch a doctor and a glass.

Left by herself, Kanan was identifying the sore points in her body. Raw, her throat felt as if it had been completely shredded by bears. Even when she wasn’t speaking, the stinging pain continued - leaving Kanan uncomfortable and slightly frustrated at the lack of ability to deal with the situation.

The next source of unfavourable pain was coming from her stomach. It didn’t seem painful to touch, as Kanan discovered while rubbing it, but it just stung sharply. Sudden movements caused it to be particularly painful as Kanan experienced whilst trying to sit up and she ended up doubled over in pain.

Her whole body felt weak and Kanan could definitely feel that she had lost weight. It wasn’t surprising as she wouldn’t be able to eat while unconscious. Kanan felt useless and pitiful, sparking annoyance within her.

Dia returned soon after she had left with both of the things she had intended to fetch. The doctor began to examine Kanan as she eagerly gulped down her water. Running her fingers lightly over Kanan's hand, Dia sighed contently.

“Dia?” Kanan frowned as her voice still sounded raspy, but it was to be expected.

“What’s wrong?” 

“What happened to your head?” Kanan was staring at the white bandage that Dia had forgotten she was wearing.

“I fell. It’s fine.”

Dia didn’t want to indulge the details, especially not at that moment. Kanan just nodded drowsily, still feeling tired after being asleep for so long.

Dia sighed heavily, and decided to keep quiet as the doctor began to ask Kanan multiple questions.

But she let out a little smile to herself. Kanan was finally back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading!
> 
> Also a special thanks to those who leave comments on my work, it’s really uplifting!  
> See you all soon!


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kanan is woken in the middle of the night after Nozomi requests her presence.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! Thanks for checking back in and I hope you enjoy the chapter!   
> There is a short time skip, but hopefully you’ll be able to follow along easily!

A sharp knock at the door jutted Kanan from her deep sleep; she drew in her breath sharply as a dull pain throbbed in her stomach. Wincing, she sat up in bed. The sheets fell from her shoulders and the cold air attacked them viciously. What caught Kanan’s attention first was the rattling of her windows and the shrieking of the wind. They momentarily distracted her from the noise at the door, but soon snapped back when it creaked open and hurriedly pulled her sheets up to cover her naked chest. 

Dress in a long nightdress and her hair loosely braided to one side, one of Kanan's servants was stood, out of breath and she looked tense.

“Matsuura-san, I’m so sorry to disturb you!” Tears were visible in the corners of her eyes as she anticipated anger from Kanan, “Tojo-san has r-returned... and she wants to see y-you urgently..”

Kanan's eyes widened. For Nozomi to need her at the dead of night must’ve meant something bad had happened in relation to the Sonoda's

“Tell her I’ll be along immediately.” Kanan stepped out of her bed. The servant bowed respectfully and backed out the room. Kanan glanced over at Dia, who was still sleeping peacefully. Lay on her back with her hair spread out it different directions, the Kurosawa certainly looked at peace and relaxed.

With a bitter smile, Kanan tore her gaze away and focused on the task at hand.

Using her quick fingers Kanan buttoned up the shirt she had slipped on off the floor. It wasn’t the most flattering of articles, much less something that someone of Kanan's authority should wear, but she didn’t have time to be picky. She then pulled on a pair of long sleeping pants and her robe which would hopefully hide the offensive clothing.

Taking one last look at Dia, she met a pair of emerald eyes and sighed.

“Dia, go back to sleep.” Softly she leant over Dia and placed a delicate kiss on her lips.

“No.” Dia broke the kiss and then sat up, “I’m coming with you. You’re still not well Kanan.” 

Kanan was surprised to see Dia actually had sleeping clothes on, which was very surprising considering they had both fallen asleep naked earlier that night. But Kanan didn’t have time to dwell on it nor did she have time to argue.

“Fine...” Kanan looked as if she had something else she wanted to say, but bit back her desire to do so, “let’s just hurry.”

Dia nodded and rose from the bed to follow Kanan.

 

Winds howled and screamed as they thrashed against the walls of the palace; wrecking havoc and rattling windows as the two walked the corridor. Lighting crashed outside and Kanan flinched slightly at the sound of thunder rolling in.

She tried to stride confidentially to her throne room, but the pain in her stomach and her continuous scares by lightening were reducing her proud near-march to an anxious shuffle.

It was certainly a cold and stormy night: Dia shivered under her thin nightgown and rubbed her arms in an attempt to warm them. She massively regretted not putting something over her long black nightgown.

“You should’ve stayed in bed, Dia.” Kanan muttered tiredly as she noticed the shiver.

“I wanted to come.” Dia dropped her voice, “and I know you’re afraid of thunder.”

Kanan pretended not to hear the last comment and confidently marched onwards - but she didn’t come off very convincing as she stiffened up again when a particularly loud clap of thunder roared throughout the palace. Dia chuckled to herself.

The two continued to the throne room. 

Upon entering, Kanan immediately made eye contact with Nozomi who was stood forward, her hair plastered to her head with rain. Behind her, there were Sonoda troops and in particular Ayase was knelt on the ground in front of her squadron. She had a large bundle in her arms. All of them were soaked.

“Nozomi? What’s wrong?” 

Kanan realised something must have been up, for there to be a big scene about their return instead of them settling down to sleep.

Nozomi's expression was grave as she looked towards the bundle.

“We found this girl outside the palace gates. She’s been beaten badly and she needs medical attention.”

Kanan tried to keep her expression straight and pleaded herself not to wince as her stomach gave another sharp shoot of pain. She walked over to the bundle in Eli's arms.

Wrapped in a blanket with her head just peeking out, was a girl. She looked roughly the same age as Kanan, but it was hard to tell. Her hair was completely matted with mud and slicked down making it impossible to tell the colour. Her face was splashed with dirt and small cuts. Lips were swollen and busted, but she looked as if she would’ve been very attractive. Dia gave a horrified choke when she glanced over Kanan's shoulder to see her.

Gesturing for Dia to step back to shield her from unknown horrors, Kanan pulled the blanket down. More injuries were apparent along her collar and bare shoulders in the form of deep cuts. It was difficult to tell where the injuries were as the girl was coated in mud on the rest of her body.

Any clothes the girl had been wearing were torn off, leaving her utterly naked and filthy beneath the blanket.

Kanan staggered back a few steps with her face contorted in disgust.

“Was she... like this when you found her...?” She turned to Nozomi, who nodded slowly.

“We think someone might have...” 

Kanan didn’t want to hear anymore, she knew what Nozomi was going to say. 

“Take her straight to the medical wing,” she nodded to Eli, “Dia escort them please.”

Dia nodded then hurried out of the room followed by Eli with the girl in her arms.

Kanan turned back to Nozomi.

“How long do you think she would’ve been there?”

“She was already cold to touch when we found her. I suspect the guilty party is long gone. It won’t be worth sending a patrol out now.” She said, reading Kanan's mind.

Kanan growled under her breath.

“I want this investigated.” She sighed, “I can’t let something like that happen while I’m in charge.”

Nozomi nodded.

“The most we can do for now is get back to bed,” Nozomi turned away from the soldiers to hide her lips as she spoke almost silently. “It’s good to see you awake. How are you feeling?”

“Not so good. My stomach is really sore and my whole body aches. I keep having bad reactions to food too..” Kanan admitted whilst biting her lip. Nozomi was one of the only people she was completely honest with - it wasn’t worth lying when she could see through it all anyway.

“You should go back to bed. I’ll make sure everything else is taken care of tonight.” Nozomi promised, her eyes locking with Kanan's.

“I’ll go and get Dia first, but Nozomi...” Kanan waited for the girl to make eye contact with her, “please take care of yourself too. I don’t want you catching a cold.” 

Nozomi nodded and gave a slight smile.

Nozomi and Kanan shared a nod between them and then went their separate ways.

Kanan slowly nobbled outside her throne room and was already regretting the decision to send Dia to the medical wing. It was a big enough trek when Kanan was feeling normal, so now it just felt as if she had been walking forever.

Of course she could’ve just called a servant to get Dia but Kanan didn’t like taking advantage of her position often - it was the middle of the night and the majority of servants would’ve been asleep.

Eventually, Kanan found herself at the infirmary door. It was slightly ajar, so Kanan stepped forward to get a better view.

Kanan peered around the door. The infirmary was eerily deserted, aside from a small team working in the corner, supposedly treating the injured girl that had been brought in.

Dia was sat nearby on one of the infirmary beds, watching over the team carefully.

“Dia?” Kanan called out softly to her. Sleepily, Dia turned her head and locked her gaze into Kanan's with a drowsy smile. Although her smile suggested otherwise, Dia's eyes held something that Kanan couldn’t quite read. 

Kanan greeted her with a light kiss as she came to stand next to her wife.

“How is she?” 

“She’s been bathed and her wounds are currently being treated.” Dia leaned onto Kanan's shoulder and the taller girl wrapped an arm around Dia.

“I won’t be a minute and then we can go back to bed, okay?”

Dia nodded in agreement and settled back on the bed. Kanan released her and approached the working team.

“Anything permanent?” Kanan muttered as she peered into the circle formed by the nurses.

The girl was lay naked on the bed. Now clean, her features could be seen a lot better, and Kanan couldn’t help but admit she was incredibly beautiful. Now free from mud, her shoulder length blonde hair was vibrant and glowed in the dim light; pale eyebrows matched it and almost blended in to her bruised porcelain skin. Her lips were swollen and cut and she sported a heavy black eye.

Kanan's breath hitched in her throat as she examined the rest of the girls body. While riddled with bruises and injuries, she was still very attractive. Her body was curvy - large breasts, rounded hips and a soft looking stomach - things Dia didn’t have.

Kanan immediately banished those thoughts and felt an incredible wave of guilt wash over her. How could she even be thinking about how nice the girl looked in her condition!? She was married?!

“Your highness?”

Kanan suddenly snapped out of her thoughts, realising she had completely missed what had just been said to her.

“Sorry, please repeat that.” Kanan didn’t dare turn round to see Dia’s reaction. The look the nurse gave her was strange enough already.

“I was saying that she mostly has heavy bruising all over her body, along with some knife wounds. They’re deep, and will probably scar, but they’re not life threatening as long as we keep the infection away. She does have some injuries to the head so we will just have to monitor them carefully.”

Kanan nodded, feeling relieved that her team had been able to help.

“We think she has been sexually assaulted; we checked a few things before we bathed her and its highly likely.”

“However, we found this on her back...”

Kanan moved around he table as the girl was sat up. Her head lolled forward and her limbs drooped in a doll-like manner. The nurses gestured to her back, near her upper shoulder.

There was a large area of skin that had been cut away. From the size and depth of the wound Kanan knew instantly what it was.

“A stamp...” She muttered under her breath.

The nurses nodded.

“It’s been cut away very recently, maybe even at the same moment of this attack.”

Having a stamp meant you were of noble lineage and held a lot of power, or you were a servant of a noble family. There were differences between a servants mark and a masters mark, but it would be impossible to tell which is which when it had been cut away. 

Kanan frowned deeply. There was a large possibility that the girl could be a threat and it might be dangerous to keep her in the palace.

“I want you to shackle her to the bed. Put one on an arm and one on a leg. Make sure the chain is long enough for her to move about, she might not have done anything wrong so she should be a bit comfortable.”

Nodding, the nurses began to dress the wound and Kanan turned away with a heavy heart.

Slowly, she walked back towards Dia. The brunette was leaning against the bed frame, her eyes closed.

Normally if Dia fell asleep somewhere like that, Kanan would swoop her up in her arms and carry her back to bed to avoid waking her. But Kanan still wasn’t feeling 100% and didn’t feel as if she had the strength to do so.

Dia looked beautiful. Kanan took her time in admiring every inch of Dia. From her long dark hair and pale skin to her beauty mark and slender figure. The doubt Kanan had felt earlier disappeared and was replaced with her undying feelings for Dia. 

Hesitantly, she placed a hand on Dia’s shoulder: Dia jumped awake, her breathing a little unsteady and her eyes looking around.

“Dia, its okay. Sorry I didn’t mean to startle you...” Kanan bent over and placed a gentle kiss on her forehead. Dia relaxed slightly, but still looked a little tense.

“I’m fine... Are you ready?” 

“yes, I’m done now.” Kanan offered Dia a hand and assisted her in standing up. Once on her feet, Dia pressed herself into Kanan and wrapped her arms around her comfortably. They fitted together perfectly and remained still for a moment, allowing their brething to synchronise.

“I love you, Kanan...” Dia whispered, loud enough for Kanan to only just hear her. 

“I love you too, Dia.” 

Was Kanan’s reply, after the shortest moments hesitance.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I will be releasing another fic over the next few months which will go into detail about what happened on Nozomi's trip away, which will include lots of detail regarding her past with Eli.
> 
> Hope you enjoyed this chapter and thanks so much for all the feedback that you’ve been leaving and al the kudos! It honestly means so much to me.   
> Also, if you wanna get more involved with me (which would be cool) I have made a Twitter! I am @shukasabs so if you wanna drop me a tweet or something.
> 
> Anyways, have a great week!


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone welcome back!
> 
> This chapter is a bit of a filler BUT it’s going to be leading up to some big drama so please stay tuned!

Upon waking up, Kanan was greeted to a pain in her stomach. It wasn’t unusual since the poisoning, her stomach was hurting most of the time, but that didn’t make it any less comfortable. On the plus side, managing to wake herself up without anyone coming to wake her it did mean her body clock was finally getting back in time to what she wanted it to be.

Kanan rolled onto her side to find Dia. The brunette was still sleeping softly, her lips slightly parted. Half her face was still a mess of black and blue from the fall, but somehow she still managed to look stunning.

Carefully, Kanan brought a hand up to clasp the one of Dia's that rested softly on the pillow next to her. After pressing a light kiss to it, Kanan moved in closer to her wife, craving intimacy and close proxemics but not wanting to wake her.

For a moment, Kanan just stared at Dia and took in all her features. From her long eyelashes to her delicate nose to her slender neck and prominent collarbones. 

“I love you.” Kanan muttered. It was supposed to stay in her head but the flutter of Dia's eyelashes told Kanan that she had let it slip.

“I love you too.” Dia mumbled back under her breath.

Kanan pressed her lips tenderly against Dia's and sighed contently into them. Dia pushed back, with a little bit more force, but then suddenly retracting - she was teasing. 

Kanan felt a tingling sensation spread through her body as a hand cupped her left breast through the fabric of the ugly shirt she had put on the previous night. Beginning in her breast, and spreading down to between her legs, the welcome sensation caused Kanan to rub her thighs together restlessly. 

A string of saliva joined them as the kiss broke apart, both women staring into each other’s eyes with lusty expressions.

Kanan propped herself up on her elbow and made to move herself above Dia, but the slightly smaller queen had other ideas.

“Let me top today.” She stayed as she got up onto her hands and knees and manoeuvred her body over Kanan's. The blue haired ruler glanced up at Dia but didn’t challenge her and instead lay flat once again.

Kanan let out a small gasp as a pair on hands found their way onto her chest. Massaging softly, Dia swung a leg over Kanan so she was straddling her waist and settled her hips carefully. Kanan put her hands on the inside of Dia’s thighs and pushed slightly, as if she was trying to move Dia back. Dia kneeled up immediately to take the weight off.

“Does this hurt your stomach? I will move if it does.” Dia asked, concerned. 

“It’s just sore this morning, but your weight won't do much. But if you could move back a bit that would be great...”

Dia immediately shuffled as far back as she could go without sitting on Kanan’s legs or else she wouldn’t have a good enough reach, especially since Kanan was a little taller than her.

“Is this better?” Dia asked.

Nodding, Kanan removed her hands from Dia’s thighs. Dia latched her hands back onto Kanan’s generous chest and kneaded gently. Kanan squirmed under Dia’s touch.

It had been a while since they had touched each other like this; the last time had been two weeks previously, when they were observed by the senior advisors, and Dia never normally counted that as a sexual encounter. It felt so impersonal and forced, whereas in the privacy of their own room it was tender and intimate.

“Dia?” 

Kanan jolted Dia out of her drifting thoughts.

“Do you want me to take some of the medication?”

It was a heavy question for Dia. If Kanan took the medication, it would mean that there would be another chance for her to impregnate Dia, which was tempting. 

But the sudden reminder crushed Dia. She still had yet to provide an heir for Kanan and her pregnancy test was due in a weeks time. She didn’t feel any different. Retracting her hands form Kanan's chest, she felt her own breasts - they weren’t sore.

With Dia begging to noticeably stress, Kanan sat up and came face to face with her.

“Dia.”

Dia snapped out of her daze and made direct eye contact with Kanan. It was hard not to considering she was centimetres away from her face.

“You need to stop thinking about it, okay? There’s nothing you can do but wait.” Kanan spoke smoothly and tried to keep her voice from shaking, “you need to relax.”

Carefully, Kanan flipped their positions by hooking her leg around Dia's waist and slowly rolling over. Even when they had switched, Dia still looked troubled.

With steady hands, Kanan pulled at Dia's nightgown and tugged it over the top of her wife's head. Small but perky breasts were revealed with hardened nipples. Kanan smiled to herself and gently cupped them.

Dia sighed.

That was a good sign. Dia was definitely quiet in bed. It wasn’t as if Kanan was loud or anything, but she was definitely more expressive than Dia. The most that would be heard of Dia was a low moan if she accidentally lost control while climaxing. Kanan hadn’t heard one in a while - then again they hadn’t been having sex religiously.

Their time together was limited as morning was drawing closer and closer and despite Kanan not wanting to rush things unless they wanted to be disturbed and left unsatisfied they were going to have to hurry up.

Kanan pushed a thigh between Dia's legs and began to grind softly. Dia was already damp, but it would definitely help in getting her warmed completely up.

Shuffling her body, Kanan lowered her mouth to Dia's nipple and sucked gently. Grinning into her lovers skin, Kanan felt Dia tense slightly underneath her: Dia's chest was especially sensitive. 

Taking a long suckle, Kanan used one hand to massage the other breast while she licked and nibbled the first. This definitely gained a reaction from Dia - a gasp was enough.

Suddenly, Dia sat up and pushed Kanan off as she did so.

“Dia? It’s okay...” 

“Let’s stop. I’m not feeling like it this morning.” 

Kanan nodded in understanding and while trying it hide her intense hurt and disappointment. Dia had already noticed the look in her eyes despite her efforts to look away.

“I’m sorry Kanan... I just need some time to think about things, to clear my head.” 

With that, Dia left the bed and headed to her personal bathing room leaving Kanan highly aroused and confused. 

Everything had been going so well? 

There was also an underlying tone of concern lacing Kanan's thoughts. Dia wasn’t acting like she normally would.

[LINEBREAK]

“Nozomi?” Kanan called out as she entered her study. Immediately after saying the words she located the purple haired girl at her desk, sorting through paperwork.

“Morning.” Nozomi said bluntly as Kanan approached the desk. Taking a closer look at her advisor, Kanan could tell she was completely exhausted. Her eyes had dark bags resting beneath and were half lidded and glazed. Nozomi's hair wasn’t much better off, and hung messily from her twin tails, one had even completely fallen out.

“You look rough. Did you not sleep well?” Kanan states as she took her chair next to where Nozomi was standing. Nozomi snorted a little.

“Sleep? I didn’t sleep.” 

That would explain the foul mood Kanan thought to herself and sighed heavily.

“After I met with you last night, I came straight here because I didn’t know how far you and Dia had gotten with the paperwork.”

Kanan held her breath. Dia had said she’d done some, but Kanan herself hadn’t been fit enough to return to intensive paperwork until that day.

“I went through everything and read it all. This pile-“ Nozomi gestured to the smallest stack on the desk, “is what Dia did, but spilt ink on. I will have them sent to the scribes who will copy them out once again and will just need signing - which I can do. The pile next to them is what Dia did and are okay.”

Nozomi moved across and shuffled another stack.

“This stack is what I’ve been through and read, but it just needs your seal and signature. They’re all minor things so you don’t need to worry.”

Nozomi moved across to the final pile and gestured to it.

“This one is what you need to go through. Most of it is just the usual, but I just wanted to be sure.”

Kanan nodded as she reached for her quill, ink, wax and stamp from the top drawer of her desk. While Kanan got started with making her way through the pile, Nozomi collapsed into her armchair.

“I also sent a patrol out to investigate this morning. They should be back around lunchtime, hopefully with some evidence,”

Kanan hummed under her breath.

“As of earlier this morning, that girl isn’t awake - so no information from her.”

Silence overtook the two for a minute. Kanan glanced up and noted Nozomi's lethargic expression.

“Nozomi, you can bed if you want. You’re exhausted. I really appreciate all this you’ve done for me - especially since what happened.”

Nozomi sleepily opened her eyes and locked them with Kanan’s: the intensity of her stare made the blue haired ruler a little uncomfortable.

“That’s what I’m here for. But there is one thing...”

Kanan knew what was coming and put down her quill and narrowed her eyes.

“You need to chose someone. Especially after what happened people are beginning to doubt your position. I’m compiled a list of possible mistresses that would be appropriate and I think it’s important for you to chose one you’re attracted to. I can arrange for you to meet them easily, just let me know.”

Kanan's mood grew foul as Nozomi pushed more papers towards her, with names on the top of the sheets.

“Thanks. You can go back to bed for now. I’ll call you later to discuss your journey to the Sonoda household so please be prepared.” Kanan said bluntly, snatching the papers from Nozomi.

Nozomi turned away slowly, paying Kanan's sudden downfall in mood no mind, and left the study.

Kanan was left staring at the sheets. With a determined glare, she pushed them into the bottom drawer of the desk. It was so full, that it didn’t quite close completely but Kanan decided that it would be fine. Nobody except her, Nozomi and Dia went in the study anyway.

Putting her head down, she finally got to work on the enormous stack of papers that had been left for her to sort.

Afternoon slowly came to be and the lunch hour came upon Kanan. After a morning of work, Kanan found herself slipping away from her responsibilities and heading towards the infirmary. Not only did she have to take some medication to soothe her stomach before the lunch meal, but she also wanted to check up on the girl that had been found as she hadn’t visited her since the previous night.

Kanan stood up slowly and felt her back cracking as each joint straightened itself out. Satisfied, she put her quill carefully beside the ink and admired her handiwork. She had made it through a gruellingly painful 1/2 of the first stack, which required her to completely read as well as signing and stamping; this gave her slight hope that the end was in sight. She was greatly surprised that she had covered so much work in just a morning, but she supposed it was because she hadn’t had any distractions.

Normally, even if Nozomi wasn’t present, Dia would be loitering and trying to help out in any way she could. Which would be nice, but Kanan found that Dia was more of a distraction than anything: she could never keep her eyes off her. Or hands for that matter. 

There was just something Kanan found incredibly sexy about Dia's working face. The slight frown she sported as she analysed documents and the way she bit her lips when trying hard not to make a mistake when writing were just the definition of perfection. Whenever Dia 'helped' Kanan with the paperwork, very little was actually done. The work done would decrease, while the amount of times Kanan and Dia had sex on Kanan's desk would increase. 

Kanan started to make her way to the infirmary. 

Upon arriving, she opened the door quietly and slipped inside. If the girl was still sleeping, she didn’t want to wake her.

Kanan's eyes glanced across the room. There didn’t seem to be a doctor in sight, frustratingly. If she didn’t want to make everyone else late for lunch then she would have to hurry and find one. 

Walking towards to doctors office, slight movement in the corner of her eye distracted her from her destination. Kanan wheeled round and spotted the cause of the disruption. 

The blonde haired girl was awake. Not only that, she was sat up and looking at Kanan.

She was also naked.

For a moment, the two just help eye contact, but Kanan then moved towards her.

“Hello!” The girl called out, a joyful expression on her face as she waved her shackled hand towards Kanan. The sheets fell completely down at that point, revealing her bruised collar bones, bandaged wounds and her naked breasts. Kanan tried to draw her gaze away to make eye contact but she had less self control than she thought.

“Hello? Do you understand?” She girl called out again to Kanan.

Kanan stared at her. Slowly, she replied. Her voice was shaky as she tried to speak the language that she wasn’t familiar with. Kanan suddenly regretted not trying harder with her language lessons and not continuing to learn them.

“Hello. I am sorry this language is not my first. Can you speak Japanese?” Kanan pleaded with all her heart that the girl spoke Japanese, that way she wouldn’t have to ask Ruby or Dia to come and translate for her.

“Oh yes! I do speak Japanese!” She said, her voice fluent. 

Kanan was fascinated. She switched so easily it made her a little jealous. There were so many questions whirling round Kanan's mind, but she had to try and focus.

“Who are you?” Was the most obvious one.

“Who am I...?” The girl pondered for a moment as if she was confused by the question. Kanan was a little downhearted, was she really as fluent in Japanese as she made out to be?

“Well... My name is Mari...” she said after a long moment.  
Kanan noted the lack of last name.

“Where are you from?” 

There was a longer moment.

“I don’t know...?” Mari said slowly while still sporting a thoughtful expression on her face. Her face suddenly changed and she looked back towards Kanan.

“But, who are you?” She asked in a bright and curious tone.

Kanan shuffled a little before answering. She didn’t want to give her position away; then the girl might not come clean about anything.

“Uh... my name is Matsuura Kanan. But you can just call me Kanan.” 

“Oh! I see! Where are we? I don’t recognise this location?” Mari tried to get up from the bed to look around but was pulled down by her shackles.

“You’re in an infirmary currently. You’ve suffered bad injuries,”

In a moment of realisation, Mari looked down at herself. She identified the cuts and bandages and areas of pain in her body. Her face contorted to an expression of pain for a brief second but she quickly got hold of herself. Kanan watched her sadly.

“Don’t suppose you can get me out?” Mari jangled the shackle on her wrist, “I want to use the bathroom...” Mari muttered, but her face didn’t hold an ounce of embarrassment or shame.

“I’ll go get some keys.” 

Kanan moved from the end of Mari's bed and towards the doctors area. Surprisingly, that was empty too. Kanan was expecting at least one doctor to be there as she entered and took the key from the hook.

Without a second thought, she returned to the bed. It would certainly look strange if she was parading a naked girl wearing shackles around the palace. Mari looked eager and Kanan took her ankle and unfastened the lock.

Next was her wrist. Kanan took her hand tenderly and gently pushed the key into the lock. Mari's hand was soft and a little sweaty, but not too much. Mari blushed a little as Kanan caressed her hand gently for a brief moment. 

Suddenly, Kanan realised what she was doing.

She didn’t know this girl? She had met her for five minutes and she was setting her free. She didn’t know if she was a friend, enemy or even where she was from?

Mari seemed to sense Kanan's inner panic when the grip on her hand tightened. 

With a soft voice and a gentle smile, she whispered

“I’m not going to run away, you know.” 

Kanan released her. There was something about her tone that just made Kanan melt.

With both shackles off, Mari stood up in her naked glory. She didn’t even seem a tiny bit bothered about her state and started to stretch off. As she lifted her arms above her head in a large stretch, Kanan found herself drawn to Mari's breasts once again. The skin looked as smooth as a pebble and Kanan longed to touch it.

Kanan hurried snapped herself out of these thoughts. It was the second or third time and it was getting to much. Dragging her gaze away she immediately began to drown in the guilt as she imagined Dia's face from the morning, and how horrified she would be if she discovered that Kanan was having such thoughts.

“I don’t mind you looking.” A teasing voice tinkled in Kanan's ear as a warm sensation could be felt against Kanan's back. 

'Is she...?' Kanan had a million thoughts rushing through her mind and she hardly trusted herself to turn around. 'Just who is this women?! She’s crazy....'

All those thoughts suddenly rushed downwards and the room suddenly became a lot hotter. All the feelings from her disastrous morning with Dia came to light once again and Kanan found herself undeniably horny. Kanan hurriedly moved away from the voice.

“P-put my jacket on...” Kanan hurried struggled out of her thick blazer and held it out limply towards Mari. The blonde took it and slowly put it on. It didn’t really cover much, but it was enough so that Kanan could divert her eyes.

Kanan led Mari across the room. Limping a little, Mari fell behind a few steps. She clutched her bruised chest and let out a wheeze. 

“Don’t suppose you can help me out?” Mari panted.

When Kanan turned, Mari was leaning heavily against the wall. Her eyebrows were low and her teeth gritted as she breathed heavily clutching her chest. Kanan recalled the heavy bruising across her body and moved back towards Mari. She slipped Mari's arm around her shoulders and helped her hobble along.

Upon entering the bathroom, Kanan placed Mari on the toilet.

“I’ll wait out here. Shout me when you’re done.”

Mari nodded.

The air was much fresher on the other side. Kanan felt as she could finally breathe properly again - free from Mari's alluring aura. The heat down below subsided and she let out a breathy sigh of relief. 

Debating internally, Kanan wondered what she should do.

Finding a doctor would be the best thing, but Kanan didn’t want to leave Mari unsupervised but neither did she want to stay alone with Mari.

Mair made Kanan feel things that she didn’t want to feel.

However, Kanan didn’t have to make the decision in the end. A familiar voice echoed throughout the infirmary, searching for the blue haired ruler. Kanan held her breath. She was going to have explaining to do.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Once again, thank you for reading, it means a lot! Sorry if the story is moving a little slow at the moment but I just have to get some things laid down before I can get to where I really want to be but thanks for sticking with me.
> 
> And once again, thank you to everyone who comments! I always read the comments in my emails and they literally make my day! And then I forget to reply like the terrible person I am but I do love reading them!


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! It’s me again being terrible at updating and replying to comments all the while suffering from the worst case of writers block I’ve ever witnessed.
> 
> I’m just trying to plow through and I may or may not rewrite this chapter at a later date but better cause I hate it.

Saying Dia was angry, while technically correct, was two smashed royal heirlooms, a slap and a screaming session away from truly capturing the point. The left side of Kanan's face still burned with a hand shaped print visible.

“You left Ruby with a stranger! A naked stranger at that! We don’t even know who she is!?”

While Dia marched up and down tugging at her own hair, Kanan remained quiet. She had made some terrible decisions in her time, but asking Ruby to sit with Mari for a few minutes while she fetched a doctor was definitely one of the worst things she’d done. Or at least it was in Dia’s eyes. 

“Onee-chan please! I said that-“

Dia then wheeled round on Ruby.

“And you! What were you thinking?! Ruby after everything I would’ve thought you’d be much more wary of strangers than that!”

Ruby was efficiently silenced and turned her stare to the floor, her face reddening as Dia continued to shout at her.

“Ruby, look at me when I’m speaking to you!” Dia approached her sister and glared right down at her. Ruby flinched and Kanan could see tears pooling in the corners of her eyes.

With Dia on a rampage, it was time to take control.

“Dia thats enough. I’m the one who asked her and I think Ruby’s learnt her lesson already. Drop it now.” 

Dia spun round to see Kanan’s honest eyes staring at her, large and slightly anxious. Dia let out a breath she didn’t know she didn’t know she was holding and unclencheld her tight fists. 

Kanan gestured subtly for Ruby to leave the room and the young redhead shot her a tearful, but grateful, look as she scurried into the hallway.

“Dia please, I’m really sorry. I didn’t think it was that big of a deal.”

Dia looked her dead in the eyes.

“After everything Kanan! You know what happened to my parents!” Dia’s voice was beginning to break under the stress. She spun away from Kanan and threw her hands up in the air. Kanan’s eyes rested on the exposed nape of Dia’s neck, visible for once since Dia was wearing her hair up. The red Kurosawa symbol stood out brightly against the red of Dia’s pale skin and slightly above the Matsuura mark. 

“You know how they were killed and you’re still pushing for this! You have no idea what it was like - your parents weren’t murdered in front of you by someone you trusted!”

Kanan went silent, her own anger rising a little.

“No? I didn’t have parents Dia! You’re not the only one who has struggled with family! I had nobody! Everything I have is what I built myself! Sure i have the right bloodline but does that really matter?”

“It matters. Things could’ve been so much better for Ruby if we had had the right bloodline! Blood is everything Kanan!” 

Kanan stopped herself before she said anymore. Dia was already breaking and anything else would push her too far. Intaking a deep breath, Kanan found it within herself to calm down.

“Dia, please just calm down...”

“Don’t tell me to calm down, Kanan! I’m going to-!?” 

Dia was cut off when she was pulled into a tight embrace.

“I love you. You’ve always got me, I promise Dia. Just breathe.” 

Kanan hoped her little talk worked, and soon enough Dia stopped resisting the hug and slowly wound her arms around Kanan's waist. Kanan was relieved as her girlfriend's head came to rest softly on her shoulder.

The last thing she needed was for Dia to burn out.

“Do you want to go for a nap? I’ll join you in a bit when I’ve done some work...” Kanan murmured softly into Dia's hair whilst running her fingers lightly up and down her back.

“Okay...” Dia whispered, her voice a little hoarse from all the shouting she had done earlier.

[LINEBREAK]

“You’re looking better.” Kanan remarked, looking Nozomi up and down as she entered the study. Nozomi nodded and pulled the door closed behind her.

“How’s Dia? I heard all the shouting earlier.” 

Kanan watched as Nozomi made her way to her usual chair and sat down comfortably. She watched Kanan with great interest and the beginnings of a smirk were growing on her face. Kanan scowled back.

“She’s sleeping. I really don’t know what’s gotten into her recently - she’s been so irritable.”

“It’s understandable isn’t it? You were poisoned barely a week ago, Ruby wasn’t well and she did take a fall the other day. Not only that, but she’s still probably stressing over the pregnancy test she’s got to do in a few weeks.”

Nozomi gazed at Kanan, waiting for a response. Someone else saying things like they knew your partner better than you was concerning, so none was given. Instead, Kanan changed the subject immediately.

“What about your trip? I need to know what treaty conditions you discussed.”

Sighing, Nozomi began her explanation. She also had a written report of everything that had been covered, which Kanan examined in great detail.

“All these conditions seem fair, how much did you have to do with these?” Kanan asked in amazement. The majority of the conditions worked in her advantage. 

Nozomi shrugged. 

“Not that much if I’m being honest with you. I amended some slight factors but Sonoda-san seemed to have a clear vision of what she wanted this alliance to be.”

Thoughtfully, Kanan nodded.

“Did you manage to meet the she-devil? What’s she like?” She suddenly asked with interested.

To her disappointment, Nozomi shook her head.

“Absolutely nowhere to be found. There were no reasons provided about why she was never present for meals either. Even after quickly touring the palace I found no signs of her. It was very strange.”

Kanan glared down at the paper in front of her.

“That’s unfortunate.”

“But I suppose we will be meeting her soon.”

Kanan looked up in surprise.

“What? When?”

Nozomi rolled her eyes with a smirk.

“Well it’s a good thing I remembered. It’s traditional to hold a feast and gathering type thing when forming an alliance. I made arrangements with Sonoda-San for her to travel up here at the end of the month with her wife for three days.”

Kanan sighed, in both relief and disappointment in herself.

“I can’t believe I forgot about that. Thanks...”

Kanan pulled her journal from the side and flipped a few pages over. She used it to write down important dates and events that she needed to remember. 

“What date did you say Nozomi?”

“Around the 26th to the 29th.”

Kanan paused.

“ Dia is supposed to get her test results back on the 28th...” 

Nozomi also paused for a brief moment, but soon continued what she was doing and reached for her tarot cards to lay them on the desk. Kanan scribbled down the dates.

“The party should keep her mind off it at least.” Nozomi said, not very tactfully.

Kanan shot her a dirty look and closed her journal.

“Don’t say that. She could very well be pregnant, even if it is unlikely.”

Nozomi just hummed under her breath and spread her cards across the desk thoughtfully. Closing her eyes for a brief second, she selected one.

Kanan was restless watching her draw cards, even when she didn’t even know what the reading was for so she was eager to start a conversation again.

“What events were you thinking for the alliance gathering?”

Not taking her eyes off the cards, Nozomi started to speak, alas a little slower and more disconnected than usual.

“The first day will obviously be for resting, since they’ve travelled quite a way, so maybe just something quite laid back. Perhaps we should have a theatre troupe come in for after the first feast.”

Kanan nodded, jotting it down on a scrap piece of paper.

“The second day should definitely be sporting events. I know Sonoda-san is quite the athlete, especially in archery. It would be fun to watch you both compete alongside your best knights.”

“What about the third day?”

“Let me think about it some, okay?” Nozomi looked up for the first time in a while and grinned cheerily.

“You’re in an oddly good mood, especially considering you were so foul this morning.” Kanan commented. That wiped the smirk right off Nozomi's face as she tried to hide her joy, “has something good happened?”

“Not at all.”

“Are you sure? I saw you clinging to the Ayase knight earlier - which is a complete contrast to how you wanted to shred her previously.” Kanan’s face broke into a cheeky smirk as her advisor blushed red. 

“It’s nothing.”

Nozomi's whole body was giving her away, which surprise Kanan.

“You’re normally a better liar than this, Nozomi.”

Bristling with embarrassment, Nozomi tried once again to throw the conversation in a different way.

“The patrol came back, by the way.” She stated.

“I must’ve missed them while I was with Dia, did they find anything?”

“Mostly just torn clothing. However, they did find this...” reaching into the pocket on her waistcoat, Nozomi pulled something out in her fist. Opening it slowly she revealed a small locket on a golden chain. 

Kanan stood and walked round her desk to get a better look. It was a little muddy and had general wear and tear, but there was no doubt that it was expensive. It shone with quality and fine craftsmanship. The locket was also made of gold and had a pattern of sparkle effects on the front as well as a few minute details that were hard to see with the naked eye. The chain was snapped which left the locket susceptible to slide off.

“Expensive, right?” Nozomi had a glint in her eye.

Kanan nodded, still in awe at the beautiful piece of jewellery.

“I’m going to have it sent away and see what an expert can tell us about it. But first we could use it to interrogate the girl - it might make her remember.” 

Kanan nodded again.

“Good idea.”

Nozomi jumped up from her seat with a slight bit of excitement in her step and headed towards the door. Kanan cocked an eyebrow.

“Now..?”

“Yes. The less time we waste, the better.” Nozomi narrowed her eyes, “what’s wrong?” 

Kanan pauses for a moment.

“Go by yourself. I have some things to do.”

With a hard stare, Nozomi left the study. Slumping back at her with a sigh, Kanan let her mind run wild. Mari left her feeling uncomfortable and flushed. It would do her some good to stay away from her.

[LINEBREAK] 

Opening the infirmary door a crack, Kanan peered in. She told herself that Nozomi would still be doing the interrogation so she would be able to slip in to take some medication and then slip away away. 

Deep deep down, Kanan knew what she really hoped: she wouldn’t have left it so long to visit if Nozomi would’ve still been there.

Like last time, the infirmary was empty aside from Mari as Kanan entered; not a doctor in sight. Mari was still sat on her bed, eyes wide as she stared blankly around the room until her gaze rested on Kanan. Her face broke out into a grin of delight and she waved her shackled hand towards her.

Kanan felt her heart race a little and she made her way over to Mari - trying to make it look like she wasn’t too excited to see her. This time, Mari was dressed. As per Dia's orders, the girl had been given a long white gown with ruffled sleeves and a low cut neckline. It fitted her chest like a glove and Kanan could hardly rip her gaze away.

“Hey, your highness...” Mari smirked, petting the bed flirtatiously. 

“I said you can just call me Kanan...” the blue haired ruler mumbled through a blush as she slid on the end of the bed.

“That was before I learned you were a King, but that’s fine with me...” Mari chuckled, “so... the angry brunette that marched in here earlier, who was she?”

“I am sorry about that. I didn’t realise she would ask so horribly towards you...” Kanan frowned and brought her gaze down, unable to make eye contact with Marias she subtlety avoided the question. The bed dipped near Kanan and she looked up to find Mari invading her personal space, her chest nearly at Kanan's eye view. Kanan wanted to lean back, but something kept her pulled in.

“It’s okay... I’m sure you can make it up to me right...?”

Mari seemingly made to move closer to Kanan, but was stopped by her shackled wrist.

Kanan took it as a blessing and moved herself away slightly. The air was still hot and tense. After licking her lips a little, Mari settled down back on the bed.

“A bed near a window would be nice. I’ve counted the bricks on the wall opposite me so many times now it’s getting boring...”

“You’ve only been awake for a day?!” Kanan choked out, trying her hardest to watch Mari's face and not her chest. Mari just nodded. Her breasts did too.

“I get bored easily, I think. And some company would be nice.”

Shuffling even further back despite the passed threat, Kanan nodded.

“I-I’ll see what I c-can do...” she muttered. The room still felt hot, and Kanan could feel her arousal growing. She felt disgusted with herself. Hardly believing what she was feeling Kanan swallowed thickly. Her mind was screaming no but her whole body said yes.

“Mari... I have to go...” Kanan stumbled off the bed. She turned and ran, not looking back for a single second.

“Wait! Kanan don’t go! Please it’s so boring!” Mari cried out.

The last thing Kanan heard was the crashing of the shackles and chains against the metal bed frame as Mari weakly tried to fight her way out.

Stumbling down the hallway, Kanan felt sick and she knew it wasn’t because of her sensitive stomach for once. Her body shivered in unpleasant anticipation and she hurried to find a bathroom. With a racing heart rate and unsettled mind, it made it difficult to focus on the task at hand. Tripping over her feet, Kanan slammed into the wall, cursing under her breath. The pain she felt was nothing on her emotions.

'I’m a terrible person. I’m a horrible horrible person. The worst. Dia doesn’t deserve me, I should just-'

“Kanan?” Dia's voice split Kanan's frenzied thoughts. Her trip into the wall must’ve woken her. Hands were on her in a second, soothing her shoulders and supporting her waist. From the corner of her eye, she could make out Dia's white nightdress pressed up against her. The thought of Dia being so close after thinking such impure thoughts made her feel worse.

“You don’t look good...” 

“I’m gonna be sick...” Kanan breathed heavily, closing her eyes to reduce her nausea as she pushed Dia away.

“Kanan you’re going to fall over! Just let me help..!” Dia pulled herself back into Kanan with her hips tucking under her slightly. Kanan only resisted a little bit this time. 

“You’re not going to be sick. Just sit down and keep still.” 

Pitifully, Kanan allowed herself to be slid down the wall until she found her backside hitting the floor. Dia steadied her.

For a while, the two just sat together. Kanan was waiting for the swirling sickness battering her insides to just calm down. With a neutral expression, Dia sat next to Kanan and stroked her hair softly. 

The pleasure of Dia's massaging fingers helped to distract Kanan from what was bothering her although didn’t exclude the thoughts completely

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I actually hate using LINEBREAK cause it’s just such a lazy way of switching scenes but I honestly can’t think of anything my writers block is awful. Sorry for the terrible chapter but I hope you’ll continue to read. The angst is just beginning.
> 
> Also thanks for helping me hit 1300 views! I love you all and it means a lot.
> 
> Also pls follow me on twitter (someone who follows my stories actually DMed me on there and it honestly made my day, shoutout to you! :D not gonna name names for privacy reasons but you know who you are ;) my twitter is @shukasabs )


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woah... it’s been a while... but thanks os much for all the support! I’ve managed to push out this longer than usual chapter because I got carried away but I hope you enjoy it!

“I’ve had it sent off.”

“What...?”

“The necklace. Have you been listening to a word I’ve been saying?” Nozomi leaned over Kanan's desk, giving the blue haired girl a view of her collarbones. Kanan averted her gaze and continued to stare off into space.

“...no.”

Nozomi sighed and threw her hands up in the air.

“Kanan, we aren’t going to be able to do much when you’re spacing out like this,” Nozomi narrowed her eyes and stared in Kanan's, “have you taken something?”

“What? Of course not!” Indignantly Kanan stood and turned away. Gazing out of the large window, Kanan let her mind drift again.

Mari was on her mind. 

She had been for days, ever since she had started to avoid her.

In an attempt to rid herself of the guilt ridden feelings that emerged whenever she was around the blonde, Kanan was avoiding the infirmary and the blonde haired girl. She would have her personal doctors come to her quarters instead of herself going to the infirmary and would go the longest route round the palace to not be tempted to enter if passing the infirmary. 

As a silent token of apology, Kanan had requested that the doctors move Mari to a bed near a window, like the girl requested. Whether the request was fulfilled or not was a mystery - Kanan didn’t even dare walk in the grounds where she would be in view of the window.

Of course, she couldn’t avoid her forever. Mari was a guest, a prisoner perhaps, and sooner or later she would have to deal with her whether she wanted to or not.

Snapping out of her world, Kanan recognised the sound of Nozomi's footsteps heading back towards her chair and the chair creaking as she took a seat in it.

“If this topic bores you so much, I’ll move onto discussing your mistress. Who have you chosen?” 

Kanan went quiet.

“None of them.”

Nozomi sighed audibly.

“You’re a lost case, Matsuura. If you don’t like any of them, I can think of another alternative.”

“And what would that be?”

“Princess Kurosawa.”

Kanan spun round, her breath lost in the shock.

“Ruby!?” 

Nozomi nodded.

“I mean, that way it would still be Kurosawa blood.”

Kanan almost growled at her.

“Ruby is too young. I would never, ever-“

“I was joking.” The tone in Nozomi's was convincing enough, but Kanan could tell by looking at her face she was completely serious.

“Dia would kill me.”

“What if she was on board with the idea?”

Kanan wheeled around on Nozomi again, almost foaming at the mouth.

“You’ve discussed this with her!?”

“No.” Nozomi was as calm and as cool as ever, but her level tone did little to ease Kanan's stress induced anger, “but I’m sure she’d much rather you do it with her sister than a stranger she doesn’t know.”

Kanan was speechless. 

“Unless, you have someone in mind?” 

In the darkest corners of Kanan's mind, a sinful and intruding thought briefly lightened her thoughts. The grinning but bruised face of Mari shone with the brightness of the sun. 

The hesitance in Kanan was enough.

“I see.” Nozomi grinned knowingly.

“You have until after the Sonoda visit to make a decision, because any longer and the officials are going to make a move.”

Kanan nodded. 

 

Heart thudding in her chest, Ruby dashed down the hallway at top speed. Her top speed certainly wasn’t very fast at all - maybe considered a slight faster than usual jog but nothing more. 

Being a princess was very taxing, especially when your older sister was almost perfect and had the same goals and aspirations set out for you. 

Sometimes, the routine was too much for Ruby. The stress, the never ending lessons, piano recitals, ballroom dancing, it all weighed a heavy burden on the young Kurosawa.

When all this grew too much, Ruby had to blow her steam in some way. It normally involved an intricate game of hide and seek with her personal servants, in which Ruby would run and try to hide from them as long as possible. Of course, she would get scolded by her servants and shouted at by Dia, but it was still fun to have a break and get her adrenaline going a bit.

But Ruby was stuck. With the light footsteps heard from round the corner in front of her, and voices shouting for her behind there was a slight predicament. The game had hardly lasted an hour and Ruby didn’t quite feel like returning to her boring routine just yet. 

Looking at the doors she was passing, an idea sprang to Ruby's mind.

With a sudden twist to the side, Ruby shot into the nearest room and closed the door behind her. 

The servants most likely heard her and would soon come searching in the room. She needed to find a place quickly.

As she spun round, Ruby realised where she was. The white beds, the sickly walls the clean smell.

The infirmary.

After the incident, Dia had warned her about entering there again whilst the blonde haired girl still resided there. Ruby definitely didn’t want to be caught in there now - her servants would most definitely tell her sister.

As she looked around for a hiding place, her eyes were drawn to the blonde form, dressed in a lose white gown, sitting up and staring at her in surprise. 

“Ah... Ruby-chan!” Mari exclaimed excitedly. Her purple eyes grew wide and she slapped her hands on the sheets happily, “Finally some company!”

 

Ruby held a hand to her lips and hurried towards Mari, shushing her.

“Help me hide... I can’t let them find me...” she whispered.

Mari's eyes glinted mischievously and she shuffled across the bed to lie on her side, her back to the door. Lifting the sheets, she beckoned for Ruby to join her.

“They won’t see you if you stay still.” 

Ruby looked at the door and without a second thought she crawled under the sheets. No sooner had Mari curled her body around Ruby, and the latter pressing herself as close to the former as possible, the door swung open.

Mari started to breathe deeply, as if she was sleeping. If she wasn’t in such a precarious situation, Ruby would’ve praised her efforts. 

“Princess Ruby? We know you’re here somewhere.” Kikuyo, Ruby's personal and head servant - previously her nanny - called out for the girl. Ruby hugged Mari's waist tighter and tensed up. If they came around to Mari's other side, surely they would notice her.

More sets of footsteps entered the room and spread out.

“If you come now, we won’t tell Lady Dia you were here...”

The temptation was overwhelming. Too overwhelming. Ruby loosened her grip on Mari and reached for the sheets.

A firm hand held her down. Mari refused to give up so easily.

The footsteps pattered around the room, stopping every now and then. 

“She’s not under any of the beds. She might’ve gone into one of the other rooms.”

“Check the closet and the office and then we will move on.” Kikuyo said, remaining stood by the door.

Ruby held her breath, difficult considering she was completely out of it from running, but she tried her best.

Feet stomped past the bed once. Then twice.

“Not in the office. She could’ve jumped out the window... it doesn’t look too far.”

“Don’t be stupid, the princess wouldn’t jump the window. Let’s just move on.”

Ruby relaxed as the voices left the room and travelled down the hall. Only when it was completely silent in the infirmary once again, did Ruby emerge. The cooler air in the room was pleasant and was refreshing on Ruby's bright red cheeks. It had been very hot under the sheets as she was pressed so close to Mari and her chest.

As she surfaced, she found herself staring straight into the intense purple eyes of Mari. For the second, the two just locked gazes. Letting her eyes loiter on the other girls face slightly, Ruby noted the bruising on her forehead and she were fading although still left Mari's face a little lopsided. Ruby searched in the eyes of the 'guest' but couldn’t find anything. They were seemingly empty.

Mari broke the silence with a loud giggle and a cheesy grin.

“We completely had them!” 

Ruby joined in and let out a chuckle.

“I can’t believe we got away with that!” Ruby collapsed about laughing, spreading herself out comfortably on the sheets. 

She wasn’t sure why, but being around Mari was nice. It was refreshing, relaxing and exciting. Mari was new and different, and even though they had only briefly spoken before, they both got on rather well. 

After a few minutes of laughing and lying together on the bed, Mari let out a relieved sigh.

“I’m so happy you’re here. It’s been so lonely,” Mari said quietly, “The doctors come in once every few hours to let me stretch my legs, and they redress my wounds once a day and drop food by... but I need someone to talk to. The window isn’t enough.”

Mari sighed sadly and closed her eyes.

“Is it difficult?” 

“Hmm?” Mari opened her eyes.

“W-well... uh...” Ruby stuttered, taken aback when she forgot to explain herself, “Well, you have no idea who you are...”

Smiling sadly, Mari nodded. 

“I might not even be called Mari. It’s just the first name I remembered so I assumed that would be it.”

Ruby went quiet. It was a scary thought, waking up one day, not knowing who you are...

“That doesn’t matter anyway. Let’s do something fun while you’re here.” Mari sat up determinedly.

“We can go to my room and do hairdressing! You have lovely hair...” Ruby toyed with the blonde locks briefly before swinging her legs over the side of her bed. Mari shook her head and pointed to the shackle on her ankle. She had been lucky enough to be deemed not a threat for the time being, and demoted to just one shackle, but she was still unable to go anywhere because of it.

“I can’t really leave this bed... and even if I could unlock it, people would see me and I’d get brought back here...” Mari's face dropped a little.

“That’s okay! I’ll bring some stuff here. Just wait for a few minutes...” 

As she climbed from the bed, there was a gentle tug on Ruby's nightgown. Emerald eyes glanced behind her.

“You promise you’ll come back?” The intensity in Mari's eyes was desperate and the hurt from being left alone for so long was setting in.

Ruby nodded.

“I absolutely promise.” She smiled gently.

True to her word, half an hour later the red head returned. By that time, Mari was restless. She tapped her hands impatiently the bed frame and her legs jittered under the sheets. At the sound of the door she jerked her head up and her smile widened when she saw Ruby, her arms full of goods.

“Ruby... you came back...” 

The surprise in Mari's voice was a little insulting and Ruby pouted.

“Of course I did... I promised...” As Ruby set her stuff down on the bed, Mari caught an eyeful of a few things she had brought; hairbrushes, hair decorations with gems embedded in them, a few stiff dolls and a small mirror.

Ruby grinned.

“I'll do you first!” Mari knelt up on her bed and had Ruby position herself in front of her.

Ruby's current hairstyle was rather childish - twintails in a half up half down style - but Mari planned to change that. With shaking fingers, Mari gently pulled loose the ribbons from the younger girl’s hair and it fell to her shoulders. Ruby sighed contently. Mari frowned as she tried to braid Ruby's hair into one braid. Her hands were shaky and making it difficult to get the hair to go where she wanted. 

Ruby fiddled with one of the dolls in her arms, but seemed content otherwise for Mari to take as long as she needed. The silence was nice between the two.

Finally, after multiple failed attempts Mari managed to secure a ribbon on the end of the uneven braid. When leaning back to see her work, Mari sighed unhappily.

“Sorry Ruby... it isn’t very tidy... my hands are shaky...” 

Ruby shook her head, and lifted the mirror to examine her hair.

“It’s perfect...” she whispered.

Mari's eyes widened in shock.

“It’s not Ruby... I can’t even-“

“Your hands feel just like my sister's... she’s awful at doing my hair, but you both have the same gentle feel to your hands...” Ruby whispered, not turning round to look at Mari, “she never does my hair anymore. She’s too busy.” 

At a loss for words, Mari just sat there and let Ruby have her moment. It didn’t last long and Ruby soon snapped herself back.

“Your turn, Mari.” Pushing the doll into Mari's arms, Ruby moved around.

“My hair is gross because the conditioner here is awful!” Mari complained, shuffling around on the bed. Ruby giggled.

“I’ll bring some of mine down for you.” 

Ruby was much more skilled at hairdressing than Mari was. With quick, slim fingers, Ruby tugged carefully at Mari's blonde locks and worked them skilfully into position.

“You’re quirky, I want to see if you can pull this off...” Ruby mumbled under her breath. Mari gripped the doll she had been given and waited patiently for Ruby to finish.

Minutes later, Ruby nodded in satisfaction.

“Turn around.” She ordered playfully.

As Mari did so, Ruby gasped in joy.

“It’s perfect! It suits you so well! I tried it on myself once but it just looked terrible- but! You look great!” Ruby thrust the mirror into Mari's hand. Mari giggled as she examined her hair. Most of it was down, but a front section of her hair was braided like a headband across the middle, and on one side of her head, the end of the braid was looped to create a 6 shape.

“What is that!?” Mari laughed and touched the loop, “never seen a hairstyle like this in my life!” 

Ruby looked worried.

“Do you not like it...?” Ruby bit her lip anxiously. Mari shook her head.

“No, it’s perfect. It’s SHINY!” Mari exclaimed loudly and hugged the smaller girl. 

“That’s okay then...” Ruby smiled into the hug.

The two girls jumped badly when the door slammed open and released each other immediately. A flock of purple hair waltzed into the room, closing the door behind her.

“Princess, ” Nozomi strode over to the bed and frowned at the younger girl. Ruby noted that Mari began to tremble under the stare of the advisor.

“You know what your sister would do if she found you here. Take your belongings and go please.” 

Ruby looked at the floor, then slowly at Mari, then scooted off the bed. Mari tried to pull at Ruby's dress sleeve, but the redhead completely blanked her and she gathered her hairbrushes and dolls. However, Ruby slid the mirror under the sheets, avoiding the watchful eye of Nozomi, for Mari to find.

Ruby scurried out of the room, and Mari stared after her. Nozomi watched her go, and then looked directly into Mari's eyes.

“Mari, we’ve decided that after a final check today, you are welcome to move to one of our guest rooms. Of course, you will be locked in overnight and during the day you will be accompanied around the palace.” 

This was entirely unexpected. Mari found herself struggling to find something to say. Especially when Nozomi leaned in to whisper in her ear.

“If you’re suspected of trying anything at all, you will be executed on the spot. Don’t be stupid to waste this.”

As if nothing had happened, Nozomi leaned out with a grin.

“The doctors will be along shortly.” She said, then promptly left.

Mari could hardly process what had just happened.

 

[LINEBREAK]

 

“Dia?” 

The sheets on her bed stopped rustling and Kanan just just about make out Dia's lithe form sitting up on the other side of the bed and squinted to see what she was doing.

“Kanan, go back to sleep. It’s early.” Her voice was empty and almost monotone, which quickly gained concern from Kanan. Dia stood from the bed and Kanan could hear her light footsteps echoing across the room and she too began to pull herself out of bed.

Although drowsy and eye heavy with sleep, Kanan pushed forward and tugged her weighted form up.

“Where are you going?” Kanan’s tried to follow the footsteps, feeling her way in the darkness with her feet in an attempt to locate any tripping hazards.

“... I think I’ve started my period.” Dia's strained whisper cracked a little bit and it sounded like she was holding back a few tears. Her footsteps stopped.

“Oh, Dia.” She said softly. Kanan hurried toward a little, colliding with the brunette. Dia had been knocked off balance slightly, but regained her composure as Kanan held her in her arms. Kanan gently tried to feel around for Dia's face and wasn’t surprised when her hand found Dia's damp cheeks. She was definitely crying.

“It’s okay... it’s fine... don’t worry...” Blurting out the most pathetically comforting words she could think of, Kanan placed light kisses across Dia's jawline and neck. A heavy sob wracked Dia's body and she curled in on herself. Slowly, Kanan lowered them both to the floor. With herself still recovering and Dia vulnerable, she didn’t trust herself to be able to keep them standing.

As Dia sobbed underneath her, Kanan let her thoughts scatter. This was the end. Dia wasn’t going to have her child, as much as they both wished. Dreams just didn’t come true. It had been a hard year for the both of them and they’d tried their best but there just didn’t seem to be a positive way out. Her mind flickered back to the options presented to her by Nozomi and she tried to shake them away. Dia needed her so it wasn’t the time to be considering them.

Kanan petted Dia's head and gently combed through her hair using her fingers. It seemed thinner than Kanan previously remembered, and it made her wonder if Dia had been loosing it a little due to stress - not that Dia would admit it if she was. 

An ugly sob caused Dia's body to shake, but Kanan caught every murmur with her own body, encasing Dia's in a loving embrace.

“I’m sorry... I’ve let you down... it’s my fault...” Dia cried out, unrestrained and probably loud enough for the servants along the corridor to hear. 

Kanan tried to reassure Dia but the brunette just sobbed louder.

“It’s not your fault, Dia. You just need to calm down. It doesn’t matter-“

Dia whirled around. The anger sparked in her eyes like electricity.

“It does matter! It’s not just about you and your heir Kanan!” Dia snapped, pushing Kanan away from her.

For a minute, Kanan was confused. That was their whole reason for wanting a child, wasn’t it? Dia continued, as to clear up misunderstanding.

“Y-you don’t think, not even for a minute, that I don’t want a child, your heir or not? I WANT to be woken in the night to hear the cries, I want to hold a creation that’s made from the most beautiful parts of us both... I want to be a mother Kanan... I want to carry a child inside me...”

Dia broke down sobbing again, on her hands and knees.

Kanan tried to approach her, but was smacked away angrily.

“Leave me alone!” 

“Dia, please just take a breath-“

“I SAID LEAVE KANAN!” 

Slowly, Kanan stood up and walked back a few paces. She could wait for Dia to calm down a little-

“If you don’t leave, I’m going to. Get out.” The silence in Dia's voice was deadly and by no means an empty threat.

Kanan scurried from the bedroom into the hallway.

She felt rather naked. With no gown, and only a long nightshirt on, it was rather breezy. Not only that, Kanan didn’t have a single clue where she would sleep.

Slowly, she trudged around the palace. She found herself gravitating towards Nozomi's bedroom. She had often taken refuge there, even sharing the same bed as her advisor. They had an odd relationship, but Kanan found great comfort in the older women. 

However this time, as Kanan placed her hand on the doorknob, she heard voices from within.

Not just voices, but moans and gasps and pants and a sound that sounded suspiciously like the bed banging the wall.

The muttering of names definitely confirmed Kanan's vague idea of what was going on behind the door. 

“Elicchi...” Nozomi's breathy but muffled moan could be heard.

Feeling bitter, Kanan marched tiredly down the hallway. For a brief moment she considered taking to Ruby's room - which she had done previously once - but she didn’t want to wake the younger girl at all. The less Ruby asked, the better.

Finally, her eyes lidded heavily and feet dragging, Kanan moved towards the guest rooms. 

It was strange, but after an argument with Dia she only wanted to sleep next to her wife even more. But Dia was always crabby and distanced herself greatly when they had an argument.

Kanan pushed on the first guest room door she found and allowed her body weight to make the door swing open. Sighing heavily, Kanan flopped on the bed.

To her horror, Kanan didn’t land on the soft mattress like she was expecting. Instead, she landed on something warm and soft which gave a squeak when she hit it.

“Hey!” The person beneath Kanan was fighting and sounded scared,

Heavily accented, the voice was one Kanan immediately recognised.

“Mari..?” She whispered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Omg I loved writing the MariRuby scene it’s so pure and innocent. 
> 
> Thanks for sticking with me guys! We’re finally JUST starting to get to the juice, so stay tuned...


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! Thanks for checking back in! I was initially a little concerned about this chapter, so I had a friend beta read for me (thank you so muchhhh!) 
> 
> Hope you enjoy angst hell

“Mari...?” 

The person beneath Kanan stopped fighting and managed to roll to the side.

“Kanan...”

It wasn’t a question, but a statement. For a long minute they lay still. Kanan's eyes adjusted to the dark room and she managed to locate Mari's face, with amber eyes gleaming at her.

“Why are you here?” Mari said quietly.

“Why are YOU here? You’re supposed to be in the infirmary...” Kanan muttered in amazment.

Confused, Mari tilted her head.

“You mean you didn’t ask for me to be let out?” Hurt could be heard in Mari's voice.

“Uh... no? I thought you were still recovering. Did Nozomi let you out?” 

Kanan felt Mari stiffen next to her when she mentioned Nozomi.

“Y-yes... she said I would be locked in one of the guest rooms at night, and escorted round the palace during the day...” 

“I see. Well it doesn’t matter really, you’re out now.” Kanna finished, rolling onto her side and preparing to leave.

“Don’t go...” Mari was barely audible, her voice hardly a whisper. Kanan stopped her movements as her breath hitched in her throat and a hand wrapped itself around Kanan's wrist. The feeling was returning all over again, the racing heart, dazed mind, sweaty palms. Accompanied with the bitter aftershocks of her and Dia's argument, Kanan found the emotions hard to control.

“I have to.” There wasn’t an ounce of determination in the sentence, and it was so unconvincing, Mari knew she had won the battle although Kanan was very sluggish in getting back into the bed.

They were close.

Close enough for Kanan to feel Mari's breath on her face, close enough to hear the shallow breathing of the girl next to her and close enough that if she moved, Kanan's hand would feel the soft breast that belonged to Mari. It was quite the situation.

“Kanan...” Mari mumbled under her breath, shuffling closer, “can I hold your hand please...”

Taken aback by the request, Kanan jerked away a little, but not before her hand came into a brief encounter with Mari's chest.

“S-sorry I asked... I just thought-“

Mari was cut off when Kanan's warm hand grabbed hers. The sensation was nice for the both of them. However, the insane amount of heat from Mari's hands did little for Kanan's sweaty palms. The two lay in silence for a while. It wasn’t awkward in the slightest and instead it felt natural.

Dia was always freezing cold in bed. Her hands, feet, legs, back - everything! Kanan herself was only warm, so sleeping next to Dia would always just make her colder. But Mari was hot to touch. Kanan could tell just from holding her hand. It was especially nice on a cold night like that one, and it made Kanan want to move closer.

The sinful and guilty feeling Kanan usually got when spending time with Mari was disappearing gradually, and she felt fairly comfortable lay in the same bed as the blonde. Slowly, Kanan shuffled herself forwards towards to source of the exceptionally good warmth. 

Mari froze.

“Kanan...? You’re really close.” Mari's breath was on Kanan's face, only inches away from her lips.

“Sorry...” Kanan tried to shuffle back, but Mari's hand gripped hers.

“You’re cold right? It’s fine.” 

It seemed both of them were exhausted; Kanan from dealing with Dia's emotional breakdown and Mari was still recovering from her assault. Slowly, as close as they were, they slipped into a deep sleep.

 

A sharp sob interrupted Kanan's dreams. At first it was quiet, but eventually grew louder. Kanan shot up. It was still there - she wasn’t just dreaming.

The sobbing meant Dia was crying and would probably wanted comforting. Kanan outstretched her hand across the bed, trying to find the source of the noise.

Then it hit her. She wasn’t in her bed. Dia wasn’t in the same bed as her. 

Then who was crying?

Drowsily, Kanan sat up and crawled across the bed.

“Mother... father...”

Although muffled, Kanan recognised the voice to be Mari's and shuffled all the way across the bed. The sound seemed to be coming from the floor.

Kanan felt around the area next to the bed. Sure enough, her hand hit a warm body. The sun was just rising outside and the small amount of light that made it past the thick curtains illuminated Mari curled up on the floor.

“Mari...” Kanan said groggily while shaking the blonde.

Mari took a sharp intake of air and sat up suddenly.

“Kanan? What’s wrong?” She sounded concerned and unsettled whilst still having a touch of drowsiness in her voice.

Kanan touched her cheek, wiping the dampness away.

“You were crying... did you have a nightmare?” 

Mari shook her head.

“I don’t remember...”

“Are you hurt?” 

Mari shook her head again, touching the tears that ran down her cheeks as she did so. She seemed surprised that they were there.

“I’m fine. Sorry...”

“Come and get back in bed. It’s cold.” Kanan lifted the sheets so Mari could climb back on the bed and slide under them. 

Lying on her side, Mari caught Kanan's stare from the corner of her eye. She seemed troubled at this sudden happening - her eyes were narrowed with eyebrows drawn together sat on top. Kanan herself seemed quite tired, in Mari's opinion. There was something a little off about her.

“You... probably shouldn’t be found in here...” Mari said quietly, shuffling under the sheets a little more. Kanan tilted her head.

“Hmm? What?” She paused for a second, “OH! It’s time I should be going... it is getting late...” 

The rising sun breaking through the curtains was definitely an indicator of it being the time for Kanan to take her leave. It would be especially bad if she was found sharing a bed with Mari, no matter how clean their actions were.

Kanan sat up with a large stretch, hands above her head. She swung her feet over the edge of the bed and searched for her slippers on the cold stone. 

Ah.

There were no slippers. She’d left in a hurry from her room late night and now she would be facing the consequences. 

Holding her breath as she did so, Kanan placed her feet firmly on the ground. The cold air and the cool tiles made her shiver a little, but if she was quick she’d probably be able to get onto some carpet sooner or later.

“Will I see you again?” Mari asked.

Kanan allowed herself to turn her head slightly. Mari's yellow eyes were round and anxious and her face pulled into a worried frown with her mouth in a straight line. She seemed so small curled up on the bed, with only her hands peeking out the top of the sheets. Again, Kanan felt her heart skip a beat. She was certain the blush was creeping back into her cheeks so she hurriedly looked away.

“Y-yeah. Probably today. I’ll take you on a tour of the palace.” 

A final nod in satisfaction, Kanan turned and padded quickly across the floor. She was working with limited time, and her feet were already cold enough. 

Opening and closing the door was easy enough; quiet too. Hurriedly Kanan started to make her way back to her own quarters. Only when she was outside her own door, did she hesitate. Dia would have questions, or would she? Maybe Dia still didn’t want to see her at all.

Slowly, Kanan opened the door a crack and peered in. It was hard to see in the darkness, but it appeared the bed wasn't empty; the sheets were bunched up on one side.

Kanan let out a breath and followed her foot into the room, closing the door tightly behind her. Her eyes managed to rapidly adjust to the darkness so she trudged forward slowly towards the bed. Kanan tiptoed to the edge of the bed and tried to keep her uneven breathing silent. 

With one hand, she pulled the sheets back slightly. 

No Dia. 

Kanna ripped the sheets off the bed and tossed them on the floor, just to make sure.

Dia definitely wasn’t in the bed. 

Leaning over, Kanan caught sight of a few bloody spots on the white sheets. So Dia definitely had slept in the bed, but Kanan wanted to know where she was. Straightening up and finally sliding her freezing cold feet into her slippers, Kanan looked over towards the bathroom. 

It was likely Dia was there. Although she wasn’t certain, considering Dia's irrational decisions and behaviour, Kanan didn’t think Dia would leave their suite. When she normally menstruated, Dia would always stay in their quarters and ride out her journey alone and out of the watchful eyes of maids around the palace. She was crabby and rather needy, often requesting (begging) Kanan to stay with her instead of working. Kanan couldn’t always say no, and they would cuddle on the bed for hours upon end whilst Dia complained of pains and nausea. Kanan suspected they probably wouldn’t be doing a lot of cuddling this time around.

Quietly, Kanan approached the door and lightly tapped on it. 

No answer.

“Dia?” She called softly, and opened the door. 

She breathed a sigh of relief when she saw the brunette. Dia had fallen asleep on the floor with her head resting on their basin. In her hands, she held a small rag. Kanan knelt softly beside her on the cold stone floor. Clearly by her flushed red cheeks, puffy eyes and the dried snot that crusted her upper lip, Dia had been crying. It was unsurprising, but still sad to look at. 

Softly, Kanan touched Dia's hair. As she did so, a notable amount dislodged itself in her hand leaving Kanan with a frown. 

Not only that, as apposed to her normally beautifully soft hair, Dia's current hair was dry and stiff. Thinking about the stress Dia was under caused Kanan discomfort. She had been focusing so much on her heir under the threat of Nozomi that she had hardly been paying attention to Dia's ill health and exhaustion. 

Waves of guilt crashed down on Kanan in that moment. She struggled to breathe a little as she drowned in the consequences of her neglect. The rings under Dia's eyes were dark and prominent, her face pale and sickly while her body seemed thin and malnourished. 

Especially after the outburst the previous night, Kanan was finally starting to see the effect the pressure had on Dia. 

With all the care in the world, Kanan slowly pressed her lips to Dia's cheek. 

To her dismay, when she pulled back she found that Dia was awake. Dia's normally sharp and bright eyes were dull and bloodshot. Her eyelids were excessively puffy as a result of her night alone. Dia's gaze pierced straight through Kanan. She still looked angry, despite her pitiful appearance. 

“I’m sorry.” Kanan blurted our suddenly. The intense stare Dia had her prisoner under was too much. She hadn’t meant to throw it straight out there.

“No you’re not.” Dia's response was immediate. Pushing away from Kanan she stood up and turned away towards the basin. Kanan could tell she was hurting really bad. 

“I’m changing my rag. Get out.” Dia's voice cracked a little. 

“Dia, please just sit down and take a breather. You need to calm down. We need to talk. I know you’re upset, I know it hurt-“

Dia span round, her hand outstretched. 

In all the time Kanan had known Dia, the latter had never been aggressive. Not once. Until now. 

The slap was completely unforeseen and caught Kanan right across the face. Her mouth dropped open in shock and she stood a staggered step back in recoil. 

When Kanan turned back she could see the shock on Dia's own face that she had lashed out. Dia's anger and Dia's shock cancelled each other out for a minute and the two stood examining each other. Dia's tired eyes locked with Kanan's.

Kanan's face stung and she felt bitter. But for such rash behaviour, Kanan knew that Dia was really hurting on the inside.

“Dia, it’s okay. I promise. I’m not angry.” 

To prove it, Kanan gave a toothy grin.

That only served to break Dia even more. 

With a blur of brown hair and a red nightdress, Dia was gone. 

Kanan didn’t bother giving the chase. Dia needed time alone. Time healed everything. The slap hurt, but it didn’t hurt as much as Kanan's heart and head. 

Dizzy with the events that had just gone down, Kanan stumbled from the personal bathroom into her bedroom. The door to the hallway was wide open. Gripping the frame, Kanan peered out. No sign of anyone at all. Dia was long gone and it was a tad too early for most of the maids to be out. 

Kanan staggered out into the hallway and headed downwards towards Nozomi's room. They needed to talk about Dia, as soon as possible. 

Foregoing manners, Kanan busted the door straight in without so much as a knocks notice. All the drama that had occurred made Kanan forget that Nozomi had a 'guest' to stay in her room.

After a night of being kicked out of her own bed, getting into yet another heated argument with Dia, seeing the sight she saw, was the last thing Kanan wanted after the last twelve hours.

Seeing her closest advisor straddling and excessively grinding against an alpha knight from another clan sent Kanan reeling. Panting, Nozomi quickly raised her hands to cover her heaving breasts in shock. Kanan felt her eyes stick for a moment on the large scar on Nozomi's back. Eli was covering her face in utter embarrassment and trying to turn her whole body away from Kanan's view.

“N-Nozomi! I need to speak with you.” Kanan quickly averted her gaze.

Nozomi lowered her voice to almost a growl.

“I guess this couldn’t have waited... please can you give us a minute? I need to get dressed.” 

Kanan nodded dumbly and moved outside the room. To give them a little privacy, Kanan moved further down and away from their room. Within a few minutes, Nozomi appeared. The shirt she wore was clearly not hers. It was tight around the chest but wide on the shoulders and came down in quite a length, as Eli was a fair bit taller than her. She still had a layer of sweat shining on her skin and her face was red. As soon as Nozomi was at her side, Kanan began walking with her.

“You better have a good reason to be disturbing me on my morning off.” Nozomi said.

“Me and Dia had an argument, twice. Last night she kicked me out of our room and this morning when I tried to settle things she got really angry.” Kanan purposely left out the part where Dia lashed out at her. That was to stay personal, “she’s roaming the palace by herself at the moment and I don’t know where she is...”

“Kanan.” Nozomi put a hand on Kanan's shoulder, “Honestly, you’ve disturbed my morning off, I’ve left Eli with blue balls, my pants are so sticky I don’t know if I’ll be able to take them off - you can call for servants to look for Dia and get the guards to do the lockdown yourself. You know Dia wouldn’t leave the palace anyway. Why did you need me?”

Kanan stopped in her tracks. Nozomi was right. Suddenly feeling foolish, Kanan turned her gaze away. 

“I can’t do it Nozomi. Dia is hurting so much. I can’t be with anyone else. Dia wants to have my heir...” Kanan felt a few tears leaking from her eyes. Nozomi's tone softened.

“Kanan, just calm down. Go and find Dia, take her to bed and get her to sleep it out. Or even the infirmary. They might be able to give her something to help her sleep peacefully and calm down. We can discuss this later. Just give me until noon, okay?”

“Nozomi! She won’t even talk to me!”

“She will. If she doesn’t, get Ruby to talk with her.” Nozomi squeezed Kanan's shoulder and gave it a reassuring pat, “stop overthinking.” 

Kanan nodded and took a sharp intake of breath. Before she could even say anything more, Nozomi had already began to waddle back to her bedroom. Sighing, Kanan started to search the palace. 

It didn’t take long to find Dia. Kanan heard her sobbing as soon as she entered the ballroom, and it was only mere seconds before she located her queen. Dia was so wrapped up she hardly noticed Kanan creeping up next to her. She flinched when Kanan gently touched her arm.

Dis moved away in shock.

“K-Kanan... I’m so sorry... I don’t know what’s came over me...” Dia sobbed harder. Kanan wound an arm around Dia and pulled her close. The wooden floor of the ball room wasn’t the most comfortable, but when Kanan was with Dia she couldn’t feel anything else. 

“It’s fine, don’t worry. You know I love you.” 

Dia didn’t reply and instead lowered her head in shame. 

“I’m so sorry. I don’t know why that happened. Kanan, honestly I just feel so empty.”

Kanan paused to let Dia continue.

“Everything I’ve wanted, I've always been able to work towards. I had to work to support me and Ruby, I learnt languages, trades, and tricks to support us, it’s all so easy on paper. Everything I’ve ever wanted to do, I’ve been able to accomplish through hard work.”

Dia let out another heavy sob and buried her head between her knees that she had pulled up to her chest. Kanan tried to get in closer to her once again. 

“But this is something that I can’t do.” 

Dia's voice broke into a whisper.

“I’ve done everything right... I swear... I promise... I’ve tried so hard... But any amount of hard work can't excuse the fact that I’m just so broken...”

Kanan's heart sank. She couldn’t bear to hear such self-deprecating comments coming from the woman she loved so much.

“Dia, Dia please don’t say that. You’re not broken.” 

“Yes I am... if I wasn’t, then why can’t I be a mother... why...”

Dia lifted her head a little and rested it on Kanan's shoulder. Her puffy eyes were closed wearily.

“You’re a lot of things: beautiful, strong, intelligent... stubborn, but you’re not broken.” Kanan's fingers grazed Dia's neck, where her Matsuura stamp was present and Dia leaned into her touch. 

“You’re also very tired and stressed out. But that can be fixed.” Kanan kissed Dia's sweaty forehead lightly, “I think you should go and lie down for a bit.”

Dia tensed up a bit. 

“Will you come with me?” She sniffed. 

Kanan nodded.

“Do you want to stop by the infirmary first? They probably have some herbal remedies you can take to help you sleep better.” 

Dia wasn’t one for taking any kind of medication. She preferred to let nature take its course and had her body do its own thing. She would accept herbal remedies, but nothing more. Dia nodded in agreement.

“Can we sit here just a little longer first? Please...”

Kanan ran her fingers down and clasped Dia's cold hand.

“Of course.”

[BREAK]

Breakfast was quiet and lonely, Ruby thought. She disliked it when it was so quiet. Kanan and Dia hasn’t made an appearance at all, which was a little worrying; Nozomi hadn’t shown up either but she rarely did on her mornings off; the knights usually had already eaten by the time Ruby made it to the table. 

Stirring her porridge, Ruby sighed and leant on her elbows. Dia wouldn’t normally  
allow it, and would scold her. But with Dia not present, she was the boss of the lonely table. It was a Saturday, so she only had morning lessons and was granted the afternoon off, but she wished she could just relax. 

Ruby debated another game of hide and seek, so she could sneak off to visit Mari in the infirmary again.

'I meant... it’s only dancing and manners...' Ruby thought and smiled into her bowl. If she disappeared straight from breakfast, there was more of a chance of being able to get away with it as her servants would normally collect her from her quarters.

Another upside would be that Dia probably wouldn’t even tell her off. 

Ruby frowned a little when thinking about her sister. Dia had been really distant in recent times, especially since the time she had come crying to Ruby in the library. Ruby had her doubts Dia would even notice if she missed her lessons that morning.It had always been difficult to get Dia alone and talk to her, but it had seemed even more so recently. Ruby had wanted to check up on her sister, but had hardly seen her. 

It was tempting. She didn’t want to take advantage of Dia's weakness, but at the same time, she really didn’t want to be touched up by her weird dancing instructor for three hours again. 

Ruby pushed her bowl away, suddenly suffering from a loss of appetite. 

Taking a quick peek around the dining room, Ruby made her decision.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I hope this chapter wasn’t too hard with the feels. I wasn’t initially concerned about Dia's charastisation butttttt after a friend read through I was satisfied that my work was all good to go!
> 
> Hope everyone’s doing alright, and thanks again for reading and leaving comments on my work, it means the world! 
> 
> As for the next few chapters, I might be a little slower on the updating side of thing seems because I’ve recently started back at my studies and I work part time too. I’m usually too tired to do anything by the time I finish all my assignments and job :/ but I’ll try not let it impact me too much becaus even I’m having a whale of a time writing at the moment. 
> 
> Also, the Matsuura-Sonoda ally party gathering thing will be coming up soon.... any requests for things that happen during that? I have some set events but I have room for banter....
> 
>  
> 
> Ops this has been really long... anyways, wish you all well and thanks <3


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! Sorry for it being so long since the last chapter, but I’ve finally updated!

Sweating slightly, Kanan perched on the side of Dia's infirmary bed. After their heart to heart and cuddle in the ballroom, Kanan has brought Dia back to the infirmary to rest up. Dia muttered under her breath about preferring her own bed because it was much comfier - but the doctors told her to stay where she could be kept an eye on. She simply agreed and lay down, because Dia had had enough arguing in the last two days alone to last her a lifetime. One cup of relaxing herbal remedy later, Dia was gone.

Despite being stone cold to touch, Dia seemed to be sweating uncomfortably. Using a damp cloth, Kanan wiped the sweat from her lovers brow gently and brushed her fingers lightly against her hair.

“Your highness,” The doctors deep voice spoke from behind Kanan. She turned slightly, keeping her eye on Dia.

“Permitted to speak...” Kanan said, slightly lazily. 

“Once Lady Dia's mensuration ends in a few days, I would like for her to do the pregnancy test.”

Kanan almost snarled when those forbidden words left his mouth. 

“Are you insane? Look at her! She’s so stressed about all this and she’s not even pregnant.” 

The doctor shook his head.

“We should still do the test, just in case. Besides, you think the witnesses and governors are going to sit quietly if you refuse to have her tested? Think again.”

“Onee-chan isn’t having a baby?” 

Both Kanan and the doctor turned towards the door, Ruby stood still in a long pink dress, blocking the doorway. Her eyes were round and watery as she weighed up the situation.

“Ruby? How long have you been there?”

The silence that followed the question was a good enough answer, and Kanan sighed as the pink haired princess averted her gaze to Dia. Kanan shared a look with the doctor before standing up.

“Let’s talk outside, okay Ruby?” 

Ruby nodded and backed out of the room. Kanan glanced at Dia one last time and headed out.

Despite being much smaller than Kanan, Ruby tried to stand tall and look her sister in law in the eyes.

“Does onee-chan know she’s not having a baby?” Ruby's eyes were a world of hurt.

“Of course she does... she’s got her period Ruby, there’s not a chance she’s pregnant.” 

Ruby looked away.

“Dia's hurting really badly, isn’t she?” Voice cracking, Ruby felt her eyes fill with tears. 

Kanan nodded. She couldn’t lie to Ruby. There was no doubt that Dia had discussed them both wanting a child with Ruby, and it was quite obvious that Dia was having problems with that to everyone. Kanan looked down at her feet.

“Yes... I just don’t know what to do. She’s so irritable and sad and I just want everything to be better.” Kanan whispered.

“I’ll speak to her...” Ruby said darkly, looking past Kanan.

“Its okay, don’t you have lesson-“

“I will speak to her. You can go and do your rounds.” Ruby said, her voice low and forceful. Kanan just nodded, a little taken aback at the tone undertaken by the redhead.

She did as Ruby said, and backed away.

[BREAK]

The deep pit of guilt in Kanan’s stomach only grew deeper as she approached Mari’s room. She should’ve really been with Dia, and Kanan knew that - but Ruby had seemed so insistent and forceful, unlike her usual self, that she couldn’t help but be pressured from the room.

Taking a breath, Kanan stood outside the white door and hesitated. There was still time she could still go back to Dia and sit with her. She could send someone else to take Mari around the palace. 

But she didn’t.

Knocking a little forcefully, Kanan called out.

“Mari? Can I come in?” 

It wasn’t really a question. Kanan would be coming in no matter what the answer was, but being polite never hurt anyone.

Kanan found she didn’t even need to open the door. It soon flung open to reveal Mari, stood with arms outstretched and a lopsided grin on her face. Something about her seemed a little off; her eyes were red and cheeks flushed. She was also only partially dressed - donning only a pair of long undergarments.

Kanan felt herself blushing as Mari pulled her in for a tight hug and Mari’s large chest was pressed against her own. She didn’t back away though, and tenderly accepted the hug whilst kicking the door closed behind her. It would be bad if they were seen.

“Good morning! I wasn’t expecting you back so early!” Mari exclaimed excitedly and pulled back from the hug. Although Kanan tried not to look, her eyes were drawn to the healing wounds on Mari’s torso. Most had bits of bandage or gauze over it, but the bruises weren’t covered and there sure were a lot of them, especially over her arms, wrists and breasts. 

“A-ah... Yeah... some things happened. But I promised I’d take you round the palace, so I’m here to fulfil that,” Kanan scratched the back of her neck. Around Mari she felt like an embarrassed schoolgirl around her crush. Mostly because Mari was naked half the time they were together. Mari dashed to the wardrobe and threw the doors open.

“You can help me get dressed then! There are loads here for me to wear, although...” Mari pulled out a velvety pink dress and looked thoughtfully for about two seconds, “I don’t think some of it will fit.” 

Kanan joined her at the wardrobe and examined the clothes. She certainly hadn’t sorted them out, so she suspected it was Nozomi’s doing. Kanan’s suspicions were confirmed when she recognised a purple gown to be one of Nozomi’s clothing items.

“I think this might fit.” She pulled it out and held it against Mari’s mostly nude form. The blonde didn’t even look at the dress, and instead looked Kanan straight in the eyes and studied her expression.

Kanan dragged her gaze up and down Mari’s body to try and imagine what she would look like wearing the dress. 

She stepped inwards and closed the gap between the two of them slightly and brought her gaze up to look Mari in the eye. 

They were even closer when Mari also stepped in and pulled the barrier of a dress down, so her naked chest was fractions away from touching Kanan. 

The heat between them was unbearable.

Kanan could feel herself getting riled up from being in the vicinity of such an alluring woman and began to lose her breath a little. Mari’s amber eyes kept a steady gaze with Kanan and she searched in Kanan’s purple orbs for permission. 

Mari’s lips were on her neck and her breath hitched and Kanan found herself stuck between the sexually advancing Mari and the stiff wooden door of the wardrobe. Slowly, Mari bit down and fully closed the gap between them. Her hands were roaming Kanan’s body.

The smooth fingers caressed Kanan’s hips and stomach, dropping lower and lower.

Kanan’s stomach dropped in anticipation and the ruler felt herself growing a little damper than usual as Mari’s teasing hands continued to roam.

It was too much.

“Mari stop...” Kanan gasped suddenly, rubbing her thighs uncomfortably together. She pushed Mari away. The blonde staggered back a few steps and she looked awkward stood alone in just pants.

She seemed confused, and Kanan didn’t blame her.

“Mari... I cant be doing this with you...” Kanan murmured, pulling herself up and trying to straighten her body out.

“Why not? You seem to be enjoying it...” Mari pressed, licking her lips seductively. 

The sight of Mari’s tongue flickering in and out of the mouth was too much. Kanan almost couldn’t refuse.

But she had to.

“Mari... I’m sorry... but Dia... shes my wife.”

Telling Mari was like she had dropped a bomb on her, the blonde let her mouth hang open for a second before trying to regain herself. Hurt was evident in her expression, but Mari tried to play it off quickly.

“That’s shiny!~” Mari forced out. Her normally joyful voice cracked under the pressure and she turned away.

Arousal was wrecking havoc on Kanan’s body.

“I’ll help you dress in a minute... i just need a second...” 

Stumbling with disbelief, Kanan found her way to the private bathroom attached to the Mari’s guest quarters, leaving Mari stood frozen in the bedroom.

Water was cold and Kanan doused her face in it. As cold as it was, the water could only ease the fire in her cheeks - the burning of her sins and the blasting heat of her arousal couldn’t be fixed so easily. 

Looking up, Kanan caught sight of herself in the mirror and grunted at her reflection. the encounter with Mari had left her shirt disturbed and wrinkled, while her hair was falling from the usual ponytail. Her face was still red. It only took a bare few moments, but Kanan tidied herself up. Mentally, she was still a mess and had no idea in how she would sort that out.

When Kanan came out, Mari had mostly dressed herself. Her back faced the doorway and her exposed flesh shone invitingly. A bandage was taped tightly over the spot where her flesh had been cut, hiding the wound from all eyes.

“Can you do me up at the back? I can’t reach...” 

Kanan stepped towards her, resisting the alluring aura that would normally pull her in further. Her shaking hands drew the zip up and fastened it at the top. Mari stepped forward and gave a spin.

“How do I look?” 

Breathtaking, was what Kanan wanted to say. The dress tucked nicely at the waist, which exposed the curves of Mari's form. Her breasts were full and Kanan could honestly say that they looked gorgeous in the dress. 

The cold water she had splashed on herself clearly didn’t do much good.

“Y-you look great...” she mumbled, “we should hurry before it gets too late.”

The reality was, that Kanan wanted to get back to Dia before she woke up and before her noon meeting with Nozomi.

With Mari dressed, they left the room. 

Kanan’s expected the tour to be quiet and awkward, especially after what had happened earlier in the morning. But she was proved wrong. Mari seemed almost completely like her usual self - very chatty and full of energy. 

It troubled Kanan a little bit, but she tried to let it go and have a good time.

Their first stop was the kitchen. With breakfast only barely passed, the palace was still riddled with servants rushing back and to carrying dirty plates and trays. Mari watched with interest at the large platters. 

“Matsuura-san! Good morning!” A cheerful voice called out form behind them. Mari jumped slightly at the suddenness, but quickly regained her composure. Kanan turned with a smile.

“Ah, morning Emma...” she said. The girl before them had two braids on the side of her head, both pinned up into a swirl to keep sanitary. She had a long white apron which covered a white chef dress and atop her dark hair a small cap sat.

“Mari, this is the head of the kitchen, Emma. Emma, this is Mari, she’s going to be staying with us for a bit,” Kanan said, gesturing to each woman in turn. Mari gave a jolly smile, and Emma gave a polite smile back. However, Mari didn’t miss the questioning look she gave Kanan nor the accusing glint in her eyes. Kanan seemed to brush it off, and continued to walk. Emma stared long and hard after Mari, even when both backs were turned. 

The oddness of Emma's behavior set off an uncomfortable streak in Mari, but she tried to ignore it.

“Your highness, we have some samples that we prepared, would you like to try some?” Two younger kitchen staff approached the duo, offering a platter decorated with small cakes with a respectable bow, “we have been preparing them in advance of the Sonoda visit.”

With a glum smile, Kanan shook her head sadly. 

“I’m not supposed to be having anything like this at the moment. The doctor said it was effecting the scarring on my stomach lining and it’s best to stay away.” Kanan frowned a little. There was a little more to it than that, but Kanan didn’t want to disclose all her heath issues with the kitchen staff at that moment.

The two girls nodded in understanding.

“Mari, would you like to try some? I’m sure you’re hungry after not having breakfast...” Kanan asked, her face breaking into a toothy grin. When Mari agreed, before she could even reach towards the plate, Kanan already had one of the cakes and pushed it cheekily into her mouth. Mari brought her hand up immediately to cover her messy chewing, as her mouth just wasn’t quite big enough.

Kanan just giggled as Mari struggled to swallow.

“Ah! That was delicious!” Mari praised the two kitchen maids, who exchanged a delighted grin with each other, “thank you!” 

They bowed respectfully before backing away, and allowing the two women to finish their tour of the kitchen.

Kanan next brought Mari through to the dining room. The long table was empty, wiped and polished to perfection so a shine shone from the glow of the solid oak. Mari gently ran her fingers across the surface of it, trying to the leave fingerprints but at the same time wanting to touch every last square inch of it.

“You’ll be eating meals with me, Ruby, Dia and Nozomi from today onwards.” 

Mari seemed to pause for a minute when Nozomi was mentioned, and seemed to associate her with fear. This made Kanan slightly curious as to what Nozomi did to make her so scared, and noted to ask her later.

Kanba nudged Mari slightly.

“Ah! Yes that will be very nice!” Mari suddenly shouted. Kanan laughed a little when she turned a little red from embarrassment as Mari realized how loud she shouted. 

From the dining room they passed straight out into the grounds. The palace gardens stretched very far. Even the grand gates and drawbridge were like tiny minuscule figures in the distance.

Mari seemed to be very fond of the grounds, especially when they came to the flower garden. Kanan felt another deep stab of guilt when Mari had gone and sat on the cosy chair that Dia normally sat in to do her reading.

It was still March, thus still rather cold, so the two didn’t stay out for long. But as they came in, Mari noticed the large stables.

“Horses!” She whispered excitedly, mostly to herself, but also partly to Kanan. With a smile, Kanan nodded in the direction.

“I’ll take you down to see them at some point,” She promised.

 

From there, they moved down the long hallway - past servants corridors and round the back of house, through to the ballroom. Obviously, there was a more glamorous way to reach it, for when Kanan had a royal ball, but there was no harm in taking the shortcut when it was just her and Mari. 

Mari seemed to marvel at the sight of the large open floor and grand chandeliers. Tables were stacked neatly at the sides, waiting for the day they were disturbed to scatter across the solid floor. Chairs were also tucked away into the corners of the room.

Mari found herself getting lost as she stepped out onto the floor. The sound echoed off the grand walls and bounced straight back to her. It made her giddy and excited. Kanan held her hand gently as she dizzily stumbled forward onto the dance floor. Mari marvelled at the sight of the room.

“It’s amazing in here...” 

Mari found herself drawn to the many paintings that lined the walls - nearly all of them were of Kanan or Kanan and Dia. The first one she noticed was from Kanan and Dia's wedding.

In her long robes and the crown sitting proudly on her head, Kanan was smiling happily, her gaze was aimed at the woman beside her though. Dia seemed equally as happy. Of course Mari hadn’t known Dia long, but the smile was off to see on her face - for previously she had been so angry and it was as if she was snarling most of the time like an angry dog. 

The two women had their hands clasped together. Dia had seemingly removed a glove, and her ring glinted in the light. 

Kanan was also wearing a ring in the painting, and Mari had no doubt that she was wearing it as they stood together.

Kanan too was reminiscing about her and Dia's wedding. She remembered that day like it was yesterday. 

The sight of Dia in her long gown the colour of snow and the. Soft smile that was on her face for the whole day. She had been so stressed in the run up to the wedding and when the day was finally there, she had just completely unwound and relaxed into it. 

Kanan remembered the indignant look on Dia’s face when they had been told to kiss at the altar. She insisted that they didn’t need to because it was indecent for her sister - the same sister who was anxiously stood by cheering them on. 

Next to Kanan, Mari took a step onto the ballroom floor. Watching her in surprise, Kanan noticed Mari’s eyes were closed. The blonde stood another few steps forward before spinning around. The purple dress she wore flared out around her like magical flames.

Kanan realised she was dancing when she spun yet again, and swiftly moved across the floor.

While Mari twirled and hopped about, her eyes remained closed. Kanan was impressed. She wanted to open her mouth and say something, anything, about how amazing Mari’s dancing was but she doubted the blonde would hear her since she was so wrapped up in her own world.

So Kanan adopted a different idea. She didn’t recognise the specific dance, but she knew the style. And it was only a matter of time before Mari would be in her original starting position. 

With a deep breath, Kanan invited herself to the dance floor and stood where she figured Mari would finish. 

As if by magic, the blonde floated her way over and landed herself right in Kanan’s arms after a vicious spin.

Her eyes fluttered open in surprise and Mari made eye contact with Kanan. A reassuring nod was all she needed to set the sequence in motion again.

Together they spun and pressed their bodies close. Each curve of Mari’s slotted perfectly against Kanan’s muscular form as they moved in unison.

Each spin and Kanan would be there to catch Mari - each step and hop Mari would be glued to Kanan. With no music, it was hard to tell how long they had been dancing. there was just the rhythm of their beating hearts and tapping feet to keep them in time with one another. 

Breathlessness soon set in. It had been a while since Kanan had done something so physically straining because of her stomach, and Mari herself was still recovering. To finish, they did a double spin and got into their final pose. 

Mari’s face was so close to Kanan’s she could feel her heavy breathing on her own lips. They maintained eye contact for a long minute, holding each other’s steady gaze. It took all of her might for Kanan to pull away, especially when she noticed tears in Mari’s eyes.

Using her thumb, she wiped the tears from running down Mari’s cheeks. Mari’s face contorted in pain and she slumped into Kanan, sobbing so hard.

Kanan sweeped Mari off her feet and brought them both gently to the floor. She cradled Mari lovingly and allowed the blonde to tuck her head into Kanan’s neck.

“I’ve forgotten so much but I don’t even know what...” Mari cried. Kanan felt her neck growing damp and she tried to reassure the blonde.

“It’s okay... I'll try my best to help you remember...” 

Mari was the second girl who had been sobbing in her arms in such a short space of time, it made Kanan almost feel like crying too.

[BREAK]

Ruby brushed the rough hair from Dia's sweaty brow. Dia watched her through lidded eyes, her vision cloudy and expression blank.

“Onee-chan...” Ruby whispered softly, rubbing Dia's cheek, “how are you feeling?” 

Dia didn’t answer, and instead continued to gaze towards the ceiling. It wasn’t often she blocked out Ruby. If she would answer to anyone, it would be her sister. Slightly hurt at being ignored, Ruby patted Dia's shoulders.

“You’re overthinking, you just need to relax a little.” Ruby reassured her, swinging her legs off the side of the bed, “She won’t love you any less for not producing an heir, if that’s what you’re afraid of.” 

Dia rolled over on the bed, facing away from Ruby and closed her eyes.

“What if she doesn’t have a choice... t-there’s other-“

Ruby cut Dia off with a smooth finger to her lips.

“See! Overthinking again. Kanan is the King - she can do what she wants.”

Even Ruby herself knew that wasn’t logical. Sure, Kanan held a great deal of power and wasn’t afraid to exercise that but it was behind the scenes where there wasn’t a choice. The governors were a group that had overseen the ruling of the kingdom for centuries, and many things had to go through their process before Kanan could even think about what she wanted. There would definitely be dirty actions behind the scenes if Kanan refused to cooperate. 

Nozomi had tried to gain access to becoming part of the governors, which would be very beneficial - but she was doubted for her fierce loyalty to Kanan. She was still trying.

Dia didn’t answer Ruby after that. She was tired, and she had a lot on her mind.

“Just try to get some sleep. The doctors might have more herbal remedies to give you later to help you sleep or to recover some energy.”

“I want Kanan to come back...” 

Ruby smiled.

“She’ll be back soon I think.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, thank you so much for coming back and keeping up with me and my works, I really appreciate it. 
> 
> I’ve been having really bad writers block (partly the reason for the very slow updates) and I’ve also been back in my studies (which really sucks) and there’s been a few more things going on which are kinda boring so I won’t go into detail.
> 
> But I hope everyone has been well, and thanks for reading. I really want to get to the proper action but I don’t want to rush the buildup so that’s why this chapter was kinda filler-y. I just want to do it properly so I have everything set up just right and soon I’ll get to what exciting stuff.
> 
> Thank you all so much for being patient <3 also sorry for being horrible to Dia I do love her really


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hiya all! Thanks for checking back in, sorry it’s been so long! I hope you can enjoy this new chapter :) sorry it’s so short and crusty I tried okay :(

The next week passed relatively normally.

With all the stress and discontent having happened, Kanan made sure to make time for Dia to help settle her back down. It was just the small things, like walks in the grounds together or even just sitting and talking. The doctors still insisted that they kept checking Dia regularly, which was part of the agreement of letting Dia sleep back in hers and Kanan’s master bedroom.

The pregnancy test had gone ahead like planned. Afterwards, it seemed like some weight was lifted from Dia's shoulders, as if she had already accepted the outcome even thought they wouldn’t find out until seven to ten days, most likely when the Sonoda alliance visit would be taking place.

Nozomi had been especially disappointed when the Sonoda soldiers had to return to Umi. Her and Eli had had a wild few days and nights, and was very sad about parting from her lover.

Despite Kanan having a little less time free, she still managed to make time for Mari. The blonde tried to see her as often as possible, and Kanan would sometimes even invite her into her study to talk while nobody was around. It was all quite scandalous. The two of them snuck about to see each other, even though they weren’t doing anything overly questionable - yet. But they were certainly growing close.

Mari now ate meals with the royal family, sitting next to Ruby. Her and Kanan didn’t talk during meals, and instead Mari focused her efforts on getting to know Ruby better and trying to gain Dia's trust. 

Dia was cautious. Even in her slightly weakened state she was sharp and doubtful of the blonde. Both Kanan and Ruby had attempted to assure her that Mari was no harm, but Dia couldn’t bring herself to trust her; it was especially difficult when they still knew next to nothing about the mysterious girl.

Dia was still keen on discouraging Ruby from being friendly with her and tried to get Kanan to bar Mari from the table. Kanan refused, and said Mari was a guest and therefore very welcome to be sat with them. 

It was also getting increasingly difficult to control Ruby. The normally shy and anxious redhead was becoming a bit bolder, with her occasional games of hide and seek becoming more often as she sought friendship in Mari. 

“She’s getting rebellious! And it’s all THAT girls fault...” Dia complained as they paced in the bedroom with the frills on her nightgown dancing round her feet.

From her position sitting on the edge of the bed, Kanan sighed.

“Ruby is bored, Dia.” She said simply.

“How can she be bored?! I have her lessons all day in so many subjects! I never had access to anything like that.” Dia threw her arms in the air. Her sweaty forehead creased into a frown and she sighed heavily, “I've given her the world.”

“That’s the problem,” Kanan stood from the bed and moved behind Dia, her hands resting on her shoulders lightly, “it’s all work and no play. She doesn’t know anybody her own age and the only social interaction she had before Mari was talking to me, you and her servants.”

Rubbing Dia's tense shoulders, she continued.

“Ruby probably doesn’t even know how to act with someone her own age if they came along. She’s used to getting babied while at the same time we treat her like she’s an adult. Mari might not be her age, but it must be nice for Ruby to finally have someone to talk to, who isn’t related to her.”

Dia remained quiet, mulling over what Kanan told her.

“I don’t know. I don’t like it. Everything she’s ever worked towards-“

“It’s your work Dia. Everything she does is because you wanted her to do it. Maybe ask Ruby what she wants...”

Dia tensed up under Kanan's fingertips, almost as if she was going to turn and shout; but she didn’t. Instead she breathed heavily and closed her eyes for ten seconds or so.

The conversation hadn’t lasted long. By the end, Dia still wasn’t keen on letting Mari and Ruby hang around together, but she saw reasoning in Kanan's argument. She even agreed to discuss with Ruby possible options to cut down her workload.

Now, Kanan was heading to her study. After a three hour meeting with the governors, she really could’ve done with some winding down, but Nozomi has made it clear that she would meet her for some final arrangements on the Sonoda alliance party and there apparently was another important matter that was due to be cleared up.

Lost in her world, Kanan barely noticed that she was being stalked. With a light chuckle and fairy footsteps, two hands grasped at Kanan's sides. Bolting upright in shock - and also because she was very ticklish - Kanan quickly sidestepped and pressed herself against the wall, another body pressed against her.

“Mari!” Kanan scolded lightly as the blonde grinned cheekily as she looked up at her, their chests pressed together. One of Mari's thighs had snuck between Kanan's legs and pressed teasingly. 

For a minute, they just stood close together, each staring into the other's eyes. Mari was still full of life and allowed her hands to roam Kanan's body a little.

The two had certainly grown closer. Mari's charms and charismatic personality was irresistible and the closer they got, the harder it was so Kanan to push her away. The only thing keeping Kanan from pressing her lips against Mari was Dia. Which was bad.

More daring than ever, Mari had been risking everything. She was always touchy with Kanan; hands roaming her body, faces close, contact hugging her even when they could be seen. They had nearly been caught in their embraces multiple times, and even once by Dia, but Mari didn’t stop. Kanan didn’t try to stop her either.

“You’re hot.” Mari said. Ready to protest, Kanan opened and closed her mouth finding the words stuck in her throat and unable to come out to formulate a sentence. 

Kanan was of course hot, she didn’t spend hours doing sporting events for no reason, but Mari had only been able to admire her solid body while it still had clothes on.

“Mari... I have a meeting to get to...” Kanan breathed. She was indeed becoming very hot under the collar and tried to wipe her sweaty palms on her undershirt. Mari pressed herself closer and let her lips graze Kanan's shapely jawline. Kanan's breath hitched.

“We need to talk...” Mari muttered. Mari's hot breath on the sensitive skin of Kanan's neck made Kanan squirm. Kanan nodded. 

“Soon. Later. We can discuss this. Mari I need to go, Nozomi is expecting me.” Kanan managed to pull away. A disappointed frown surfaced when she was freed from Mari's scent.

Mari blew her a cheeky kiss as they parted ways. 

“Nozomi?” Kanan entered her study, swinging the door closed behind her.

Hands resting under her chin, Nozomi leant against the arm of her chair with a heavy sigh. 

She had been really down the last few days since the Sonoda troops has returned to their own ground and barley acknowledged Kanan's entrance into the room.

“I didn’t think you’d be this sexually frustrated... she’s only been gone a few days.” Kanan muttered. Nozomi sighed again, heavily.

“It’s just after being apart from for so long...” Absentmindedly, Nozomi muttered, “you wouldn’t understand. You and Dia haven’t been apart for more than a day since you got together.”

“My and Dia didn’t hate each other’s guts for the best part of-“

“Okay okay...” Nozomi interrupted, the ghost of a teasing grin shadowed her face.

“Anyway, you remember the locket we found?”

“Yeah, the one you sent away?”

Nozomi nods.

“It’s come back.” Handing Kanan a parchment, Nozomi continued, “I don’t know what you want to do about it.”

Kanan’s face was drawn to a frown as her eyes scanned the parchment. 

“She’s an Ohara?!” The shock in her voice was clear. With a shrug, Nozomi added.

“Well, that’s the necklace's origin. Like we thought, it was incredibly expensive and well made, possibly a family heirloom. Could also be a reason why they cut her stamp from her shoulder. There’s a full analysis of the necklace and the Ohara family attached.”

The Ohara family were a very very rich noble family, known for their notable, bright blonde hair and business in many overseas countries. 

Taking her time, Kanan took to her chair and began the read of the first parchment Nozomi had handed to her. It contained a brief overview of the materials and possible craftsmanship of the locket, as well as a value. 

“Although... if they did know she was an Ohara, why didn’t they just hold her for ransom?” Kanan asked, “they certainly would’ve gotten a lot of money for her. If she’s the only heir especially.”

“They took the time to cut off her stamp so they surely knew who she was,” Nozomi added.

Kanan's fingers tapped restlessly on the table and she bit her lip.

“What are we going to do? What do we know about the Ohara clan?” Kanan’s demanded.

“They are very wealthy, and carry a lot of influence. However they prefer to lie low in politics and mostly remain neutral and keep themselves to themselves... in all honestly I’ve not heard news about them in a while. Maybe we should try and reach-“

“No.” Kanan put the parchment down, “don’t reach out to them. Not yet.”

With her eyebrow raised slightly Nozomi drew her lips into a stern line.

“Kanan... you can’t keep something like that from her. I know you like her, but this is important. She’s a missing person and-“

“No. We are not reaching out.”

Nozomi sighed. The unreasonable side of Kanan was talking.

“Kanan you need to think about this. She doesn’t know who she is and can’t make an educated and informed decision of where she wants to be. I didn’t know the Ohara clan even had an heir.”

“Exactly! It’s definitely not well known that the Ohara's even had a daughter. Nobody would know. We could pretend that we didn’t even know...” Kanan herself knew how ridiculous that sounded.

Nozomi snorted and tossed her head.

“On another note, I hope you’ve been thinking. The Sonoda's are due in a weeks time and you need to make a final decision about your heir. If you’re going to take a mistress, you need to hurry up and chose.”

Nozomi already knew who Kanan wanted. It was clear as day, and cards weren’t even needed to take a reading.

“How am I going to break it to her..” Kanan whispered, “She pretens she can take these things but really she’s weak. It would destroy her.”

In seconds Kanan had changed from the proud ruler she was, speaking her mind and what she wanted to a worried girl, who anxiously fretted about the future.

“Ever heard of polyamory?” Nozomi suggested, her tone remained neutral so she didn’t give anything away. As she leant back into her armchair a thoughtful look passed her face.

“It would never work. Dia won’t let Mari even be friendly with her.”

“It’s not impossible.”

“No, but it’s selfish. I shouldn’t force Dia into something. I don’t even know if I like Mari that much...”

“You sure looked like you liked her an awful lot when she had you pressed against the wall.” Nozomi muttered. Kanan gave her a stern look.

“Mari is just erratic. It’s her personality. She’s touchy with everyone.”

“She’s never pressed her chest up against me while running her lips on my neck.”

“That was just- How much have you been watching?!” Kanan gave an indignant flare in Nozomi's direction. The purple haired woman gave a smug smirk.

“Enough to know that if you ever gave her the ok she would be in your pants in seconds.”

Kanan sighed.

“Maybe, I don’t know.”

“You’re not very honest, Kanan.” Lazily, Nozomi shifted in her seat to watch Kanan better. 

“Go for her. I can help push you in the right direction...”

“I don’t want your help. You couldn’t sort you and Ayase out for years.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yoooooo. Sorry for being an asshole and not updating. I’ve been really struggling with life and honestly I’m considering dropping out of all my classes and just getting more working hours because it’s making me so stressed and tired all the time and I just hate myself a lot atm. 
> 
> Anyways, next chapter shouldn’t be so long of a wait because I got stuck writing this one and skipped ahead and started writing the next few because I wanted to haha. Hope everyone has been well, and thank you so much for 2k hits!! It means so much to me! And I’m almost at 100 kudos! Thank you all so much <3 
> 
> Thanks for supporting my work, and I’ll see y’all in about two weeks hopefully.


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hiya y’all! Thanks for checking back in... wow I kno this is so soon after my last chapter it’s a miracle

Enraged and irritable, the winds battered at the palace. Trees beat viciously against the windows and whipped at the glass windows, leaving them with deep scars and scratches. The moon was nowhere to be seen in the sea of melancholic grey floating above nor was there a star in sight. Rain as hard and fast as arrows shot downwards forcefully with enough power to cause some discomfort to those sat outside.

Inside the palace, it was a desperate attempt to get warm and stay warm. Servants were up later than normal, frantically feeding the fire and trying to tame the flames. The main hall was a large room and exceedingly difficult to warm up, especially with the stone floor, but they were doing the best they could.

In a smaller room, the royals of the kingdom were housed. The bedrooms were still struggling to heat up and it would be better for them to group together to keep warm whilst waiting.

Ruby was shivering the worst out of everyone. She had always been a sickly child according to Dia; always suffering with coughs and colds or sickness and exhaustion. This night was proving very challenging for her. Due to her frail nature and thin body, she was definitely more susceptible to succumbing to the cold than the others. 

Dia wasn’t much help. Her own body was cool to touch and while she wasn’t shivering, she definitely wasn’t helping Ruby warm up as they cuddled under the layers of blankets. Kanan and Mari were sat separately, each with their own set of blankets.

“Ruby... Ruby don’t fall asleep.” Dia said sternly, nudging her lethargic sister and pulling her in closer. Ruby's slim body trembled against Dia's lithe form and she tried to keep her eyes from shutting. Dia feared that if she fell asleep, she wouldn’t wake up. With the direction of the temperature, it was growing more possible for that to happen. 

“Kanan, please, help me warm her up... she’s getting colder.” Dia's voice wobbled. Kanan's body heat was worlds apart from Dia's, but not warm enough. Joining Dia under the shared blankets, Kanan extended her arms around Dia and Ruby. They were both freezing to touch. 

“Ruby, it’s okay. Here, I’m a bit warmer.”

“Yes Ruby... go to Kanan...” Dia pried Ruby's stiff hands from around her and tried to make the younger girl go to Kanan. As soon as she felt the heat difference, Ruby latched onto her.

Dia sighed in relief.

Across the room, Mari watched the three intently. Dia still hadn’t made any welcoming gestures towards her, and even barely acknowledged her at meal times. This time wasn’t any different, so Mari sat in silence, basking in her naturally warm body. 

She couldn’t help but feel a spark of jealously. Kanan seemed to care so deeply for both Dia and Ruby, while she was sat on the edge of the group.

Nozomi soon made an appearance, dressed warmly over her usual 'uniform' dress. Behind her, she was shadowed by a servant with a tray of hot drinks. Hot milk for Ruby, and tea for Kanan, Dia and Mari.

“The Sonoda's are supposed to be here soon.” Nozomi commented, then sipped her own tea with a glance at the window, “Not the best weather for travelling. I’ve asked the servants to heat their bedroom and beds too.”

“Thanks Nozomi.” Kanan nodded. Her and Dia encouraged Ruby to sit up and sip the milk that was offered. 

“Here, if you put your hands on the cup you can warm your fingers up.” Kanan offered the cup to Ruby. When Ruby took it with shaky hands and nearly dropped it, Kanan put her hands over Ruby’s to stabilise them.

“T-t-Thank-k-ks...” Ruby stuttered. 

“Are you feeling any warmer?” Eagerly, Dia asked. Ruby gave a half hearted nod, which meant not really. Dia slouched.

“Maybe someone else who’s a bit warmer could sit with Ruby,” Nozomi suggested, looking at the servants stood nervously at the sides the room, “surely one of you has a better body temperature?” 

“I’ll do it.”

Mari spoke up, one of the rarer times in Dia's presence. Nozomi cocked an eyebrow while Kanan seemed shocked, and Dia went on the offensive.

“Absolutely not. I can’t let a stranger sit with-“

“Dia!” Kanan's loud voice cause Ruby to startle against her, “Leave Mari alone. She’s done nothing but befriend Ruby since waking up, and now you’re turning down a request to help your sister?”

Dia went foolishly silent, refusing to look at Kanan.

“Fine... she muttered under her breath, and opened up the blanket to Mari. Mari crawled in, and removed her top layers, leaving her in a loose vest. 

“Ruby, let Mari sit with you.” Kanan said gently and pushed the younger girl in Mari's direction. Soon, Ruby was settled against Mari and her shivering was beginning to slow down. Even Dia herself couldn’t deny that Mari was very warm. With Kanan on one side, and Mari on the other, Dia felt herself becoming a little warmer herself. Mari was hot to touch, and just having their knees touching as they huddled together allowed Dia to realise her impressive body temperature. With Ruby cuddled up to Mari, Kanan pulled Dia in.

“You’re freezing too.” She breathed.

“Ruby was more important than me...” Dia trembled. Kanan placed a gentle kiss to Dia's forehead, which didn’t go unnoticed by Mari.

The silence between the four of them was observed by Nozomi, who slipped leisurely at her drink.

A knock indicated there was someone wanting her attention, so Kanan looked over to the door where one of the servants was stood.

“A group of horses and carriages have arrived, each sporting the Sonoda crest.” She informed Kanan with a low bow.

“Okay, I’ll be right there. Please get the guards to escort the knights and horses through to the stables and I will come and welcome Sonoda Umi and her wife.”

The words 'she-devil' still roamed Kanan's brain as she got up and headed to the door; since Nozomi's visit to the Sonoda household did little to discover who she was, they were both still wondering. Nozomi was at her side, neatening herself up.

“Dia? Are you coming?”

The tone in Kanan's voice was wanting for Dia to come, but the brunette looked so torn between staying to watch over Ruby and going with her. Kanan saw the battle in her eyes and shook her head. Before Dia could even open her mouth, Kanan answered her own question.

“It’s okay, you stay here.” She smiled gently. She and Nozomi left the room before Dia could even get another word in. 

In near silence Kanan and Nozomi walked to the main hall. The winds still battered the walls but the palace stayed standing strong.

“Are you ready?” Nozomi prodded, looking for a reaction from Kanan. Taking a deep breath, Kanan nodded.

“I have to make a good impression. I don’t want to come off as weak.” 

Nozomi studied Kanan closely as they stood still together for a moment outside the hall doors. Her expression was stern with her lips drawn tight and her eyes brows furrowed. 

“Just relax. It will go fine, I promise. Don’t be too strong or you’ll just come off as stiff and unfriendly. Smile.”

Like a mother giving a prep talk, Nozomi uttered the words softly whilst giving Kanan's back an encouraging pat. Kanan nodded and sucked in a deep breath. 

“Okay. I’m ready.” 

Nozomi pulled them both forwards and opened the wide doors. 

It seemed just as they were entering, the Sonodas were also entering. A few rows of knights, soaked to the bone under their armour, led by Eli in her blue rimmed chest plate and her blue feathered helmet tucked under her arm. The feather was wet and drooped sadly.

Kanan felt Nozomi bristle with excitement as Eli came into view, shaking the water from her golden air as she came. 

Immediately after making eye contact with Kanan, the blonde dropped to her knees followed by the rest of the knights.

Kanan smiled down at her.

“Ayase, thank you for coming. My knights will escort your troops to the showers and for a hot meal before settling down for the night. I appreciate this weather isn’t ideal for travelling.”

Eli raised her head and nodded at Kanan.

“Thank you for your hospitality.” She said gratefully. 

The knights were led away, but not before Eli managed to get a quick, quiet word in with Nozomi and the great doors opened once more, this time a much smaller group entered. 

A large black hat accompanied by a feather on its edge was donned by one of the more notable figures that came in. Attached to them was a long black cloak, and underneath a rich navy blue was peeking out, a clear symbol of wealth. The first figure was walking slowly and assisting the second figure, who was bundled up tight in multiple layers. A few more heavily dressed figures were by their sides.

The doors were closed once again, and Kanan approached her guests. 

“Sonoda-san, I would like to welcome you to my palace. Thank you so much for making the journey, especially in these incredible conditions.”

The figure with the large hat removed said item, and the cloak was taken off her shoulders by the knight behind her. A lanky girl with a sea of cobalt hair appeared from under the heavy clothing, and she sported a half smile on her damp face.

“Matsuura-san, please, call me Umi. It is a pleasure to finally meet you.” Leaving the figure she had assisted in walking in, Umi walked forward with a hand outstretched. Kanan took it and shook heartedly.

“You must call me Kanan then please.” She smiled. Kanan was only a smidge taller than Umi, but the other girl seemed to be built quite slightly beneath all her royal layers. Umi stepped backwards and brought the other person forward, which could be made out to be a woman now that her heavy clothing was removed.

Her hair was ash grey in colour, and as well as a delicate and pretty face, she had kind, tired eyes and pink lips. Umi brought a hand around her with a determined smile.

“This is my partner, Kotori. Thank you for having us.” 

As they bowed to Kanan, the blue haired girl couldn’t help but notice the enormous swelling of Kotori's stomach, which she had somehow overlooked earlier. The ash haired woman was clearly and heavily pregnant - she looked as if she were about to pop.

“I’ve had the servants prepare you a meal and you’re welcome to a bath before we settle for the night, although it is quite late.” Kanan said, eyeing the woman.

“That would be lovely, wouldn’t it Umi-chan?” Kotori spoke up, squeezing Umi's arm with a sweet smile. Umi nodded and stuttered out a few words.

“T-thank you.” She smiled awkwardly.

Kanan was completely confused. How could a woman so meek and polite like Kotori have a nickname like the 'she-devil'?! Were they even the same person?

“I’ll show you there, but first, this is my long term advisor, Tojo Nozomi.” Kanan gestured for Nozomi to come forward, she too bowed respectfully to Umi and Kotori and gave them a smile, “Unfortunately my wife is currently caring for her younger sister, who has fallen ill, but she will be around for you to meet her tomorrow.”

“That would be wonderful!” Kotori smiled, and encouraged Umi to introduce their two servants that were with them.

“This is Riko, she works mostly in the kitchen but is also a talented musician. I asked her to come to perform for you.” Umi said with a smile, and the nervous redhead stepped forward. Riko bowed respectfully but seemed incredibly anxious and fiddled with her fingers.

“Thank you for having me.”

“And this is Hanamaru, my wife's personal servant and midwife.” 

A gentle looking girl stepped forward, damp brown hair resting on her shoulders. With her soft facial features and warm eyes, the girl didn’t look a day older than 16. She also bowed. She didn’t seem as nervous as Riko, but seemed to have a nervous verbal tic that surfaced when she spoke.

“Nice to meet you, zura.”

Immediately after it had slipped out, Hanamaru put a hand to her mouth and apologised. Kanan told her it was fine, and Kotori and Umi were already used to it.

Kanan led the Sonoda clan towards the baths. Umi and Kotori were welcomed into the royal family public baths, while the two servants were sent to the guest baths. 

“You’re welcome to head off to bed, Kanan-san.” Umi said as she helped Kotori into the changing rooms.

“Are you sure? It would really make me feel better if I know you’re going to make it to bed okay.”

Kotori agreed with Umi,

“We will be fine! Your servants are around and I’m sure they know where we’re going, even if we don’t!” Kotori smiled cheerfully. 

Kanan couldn’t help but feel a twinge of jealousy as she watched Umi fuss over Kotori; her desire for Dia to conceive her heir reared its head once again. Kanan was actually surprised that Kotori came to this alliance meeting. She looked as if she was ready to give birth any day. Her belly was huge, and it was clearly uncomfortable for her to be in one position for long. It was a mystery how she survived the long and tedious ride down.

“If you’re absolutely sure...” Kanan trailed off guiltily, biting her lip slightly.

Umi encouraged her on

“I promise we will be fine. Please go and rest for tomorrow.”

Finally, Kanan agreed and bid the couple farewell. Nozomi had separated from her, and was no doubt heading to her room to see Eli after their 'long' few days apart.

Kanan walked herself back down the the gathering room where she left Mari, Dia and Ruby. As she cracked the door open, the heat blast from the now toasty fire hit her directly in the face, which took her by surprise.

It didn’t surprise her as much as the sight she saw though.

Mari was fast asleep, her head backwards against the wall and sitting somewhat upright with part of a large blanket around her. Ruby was leaning into Mari's lap, her arms wound around the blondes waist and her head resting on her stomach while her legs were on the floor. Finally, the most surprising position was Dia: her head was resting lightly on Mari's shoulder.

It was a rather amazing sight to see.

So much so, that rather than Kanan waking them just yet, she sat for a little longer and watched her small family rest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you all enjoyed it, sorry it was quite short but I wanted to post it before 4th Live and wish anyone who is going to have an amazing time! 
> 
> I will most likely be hungover and scrolling the ll wiki twitter after celebrating my birthday but I hope everyone has fun.
> 
> And yes FINALLY after talking about her for over ten chapters Umi is here with her she devil of a wife. I’ve been waiting to write this since I started the fic. Can’t wait for the next part. 
> 
> Thanks again, and will see you soon :D


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heya all..  
>  Its been a while but here we are

“Ruby... Ruby?!” Dia shot upright in her bed. Her first thoughts of the day has been her final thoughts for the previous day; her sister. It was a shock to Dia's system to wake up in her own bed, the last thing she knew was that she had been lay on the floor, comforting her freezing sister. In a frenzy, Dia tossed the sheets off her bed and darted out of it.

“Dia! Wait!” Kanan’s muffled voice accompanied by rustling could be heard. The hairs on Dia's arms began to lie flat once again, but she looked anxiously towards the door. The cold air prickled her arms and goosebumps rose on her skin.

“Kanan? Where’s Ruby? What happened last night?”

Her hair messy from her restless sleeping, Kanan sat up and her pale face was visible from under the sheets.

“It’s okay, Dia. Ruby is completely fine. We warmed her up last night, remember?” Kanan soothed Dia and hooked a hand round Dia's arm to tow her back to bed.

Dia was nodding slowly, the memories coming back from the previous night to fill the gap in her thoughts.

Dia climbed back into the large bed and shuffled close to Kanan. The light was barely fighting through the curtain gaps and it still seemed fairly dark outside.

“Everything is okay Dia. I promise.” Kanan murmured has she held her wife close, stroking Dia's hair and lightly patting her head. Although she seemed a little relaxed, the uneven breathing told Kanan that Dia was still thinking about Ruby.

“I’ll take you to see her,” Kanan suggested, knowing that would help calm Dia's anxiety a little, “but just wait until it gets a bit later. She’s had a rough night and it would be nice if we let her sleep in a little.”

Dia nodded. The sheets she had ducked back into were cosy and warm, as opposed to the chilling air in their room, the fire had long since gone out, and instead of the flames a pile of ash sat.

Dia shuffled closer to Kanan, who gratefully accepted her touch and brought her in closer. They lay with their legs tangled in each other and Dia's head pressed to Kanan's neck. 

“When will this end...?” Kanan heard Dia murmur lightly.

“When will what end?”

Dia sighed.

“Everything... just the stress, the work, everything just needs to stop. I can’t keep up.” Dia muttered, her voice growing lower. She seemed conscious that it might be a sensitive subject for Kanan, considering she did most of the work.

“I know. Let’s just get the Sonoda visit out of the way. We can take a holiday. Where do you want to go?” Kanan felt Dia's breath on her neck and fingers grazing her thigh lightly.

“Anywhere...” 

It had been a long time since the two of them had gone away together. Trying to balance Kanan's work with downtime for the couple had grown more difficult in recent times. It was hard when things were such a mess, and the two of them had to marry quick for the sake of helping to consolidate Kanan's position as ruler. Their honeymoon was barely existent. One night away was all they got. At the time, there was no complaints because Ruby was really sick and Kanan didn’t have an advisor and all the work she had to do herself.

But since then, they hadn’t had any time off. Not properly.

For a while, the two of them lay together. Their fingers brushed against each other and Dia shivered; partly because of the cold, partly because of the fleeting touches Kanan delivered to her body. 

“How did the Sonoda arrival go...?” 

“Well enough. Sonoda-sans wife came along too... she’s...” Kanan trailed off, searching for the right words. Dia would find out sooner or later, but she didn’t want to spoil the mood they had created by dropping the 'p-word', “She’s not what I had expected.”

Sudden tensions in Kanan's body caused Dia to feel suspicious. Hammering like a drum, Kanan's heart was going wild in her chest and Dia, with her head pressed against it, could feel each beat. Dia chose to ignore it for now.

“I see... the 'she-devil'....” 

Kanan suddenly stifled a laugh. Dia cocked an eyebrow in suspicion.

“What?”

“I wonder if they call you anything like that...” Kanan chuckled. Her hearty laughter caused the bed to shake a little and it rumbled deep in her chest. Dia felt her lips curling upwards as she failed to suppress a grin.

“Something sinister... the dark knight?”

“Don’t be silly. I’ve not ridden in a while but I bet I could still match you.” Dia chuckled. She moved her hands and caressed Kanan's smooth back. Her fingertips danced on the warm skin gently.

“You would never.” Kanan huffed, shuffling around a little and in the process she bumped Dia. A gasp escaped Dia's lips and she stiffened a little. Pulling back in alarm, Kanan glanced down at Dia.

“Is everything okay? Sorry, I didn’t realise I was being so rough.” 

Dia nodded.

“I’m fine, it’s just my chest is a bit sore today...” she murmured, closing her eyes in embarrassment. 

 

“Matsuura-san...” a muffled voice accompanied by a knock at the door could be heard.

After placing a gentle kiss to Dia's head and pulling the blankets up, she answered.

“Enter!” 

A ginger haired servant entered with a tired smile. Kanan nodded in greeting.

“Sonoda-san has begun to rouse, and the their knights are already eating out at the barracks with our soldiers. Breakfast is on its way to preparation and Tojo-san said I should let you know.” The servant bowed respectfully.

“Thank you. I’ll be along shortly.”

“Is there any updates on Ruby?” Dia sat up eagerly.

“The young Miss Kurosawa is fine. Very tired, but she completely fine.” 

Dia breathed a sigh of relief and looked down at her hands. Kanan nudged her happily.

“See? I told you. Now let’s get ready.” 

Kanan thanked the servant and bade her away: her and Dia wanted to dress in peace.

。。。。

 

“Mari! What are you doing!?” 

Said blonde was rudely awoken by a gush of cold air and her arm being tugged. She shivered in the coldness of the room, wrapping her arms over her bare torso. She was shaken again and the angry whisper snapped.

“Mari!” 

Slowly, Mari pried her eyes open finding Nozomi staring directly at her, her eyes harsh.

“Get out of Ruby's bed! Dia is going to be here any minute and you’re naked?!”Nozomi yanked Mari's arm again and she winced under the pressure.

Her mind was foggy with sleep and she allowed herself to be dragged across the room.

“Where are your clothes?!” Nozomi hissed, “and what were you doing?!”

Mari shrugged,

“I took them off last night because Ruby got cold again.”

“You couldn’t warmed her without taking anything off?! Dia was just starting to warm to you and if she saw this she would have just flipped out again...”

Mari shrugged tiredly as Nozomi pulled her arms through sleeves and attempted to roughly dress her.

“Skin to skin contact is much better. She warmed up so much faster when we both took our layers off-“

Nozomi's eyes darted alarmingly to the bed, at Ruby's sleeping form.

“You didn’t... she still...”

“What? No I told Ruby she didn’t have to take anything off if she didn’t feel comfortable. She’s got her vest and pants on. Even I still have my pants on.”  
Mari smirked and gestures down to her plain white underwear, which rested just above the knee. Nozomi sighed and shoved a long skirt in Mari's direction.

“The fact you have you chest out with no shame completely erases the fact you still have pants on.” She said matter-of-factly.

Mari just shrugged again and yawned.

“Let get out of here, okay? I knew you’d pull a silly stunt like this so it’s a good thing I came to get you before Dia.”

“Hmm? From the bites on your neck it seems like you’ve had a good night..” Mari teases, ignoring Nozomi's warnings and completely changing the subject

Nozomi sighed heavily. Mari certainly had seemed to settle right down in the recent weeks, often teasing and playing around with Nozomi. It wasn’t that Nozomi didn’t like to have a laugh, but there was a time and a place.

“Mari?” Ruby was waking. Her voice was muffled until she poked her head over the top of her sheets. She seemed surprised to see Nozomi there, but smiled.

“Thanks for keeping me warm...” Ruby said with a grin. Mari smiled back.

“No worries!” She said, in English. Ruby giggled but Nozomi just sighed.

“Let’s go Mari... Ruby I’ve arranged for your breakfast to be brought up to you as I thought you might not be one hundred percent. The doctors will be along shortly too, Dia was worried you might get an infection so we wanted to make sure.” 

Personally, Nozomi thought Dia babied Ruby way too much for someone her age. It was no wonder she was always ill when Dia barely allowed her to be exposed to the elements and get used to them.

Ruby nodded tiredly and stifled a yawn. She nestled back down in the sheets, her eyes were lidded slightly but she waved as Nozomi and Mari left. 

As the two busty girls roamed out to the hallway, Nozomi turned to Mari urgently.

“You need to stay out of the way while the Sonoda's are here.”

Nozomi had her suspicions, and if she was correct about Mari being the Ohara heir - which she was ninety nine percent sure of - then Umi would most definitely know and recognise her. The Sonoda and Ohara clans had a lot of business links and had worked closely. Personally, she wanted to let Mari know, for a lot of trouble could happen if they failed to alert her own family, but going against Kanan's wishes was something she couldn’t do.

Mari's eyes held a silent challenge, her lips drawn into a tight line.

“I’ll have your food brought to your room, just keep on the low, okay?”

Mari nodded, albeit hesitantly, but remained holding Nozomi's gaze steady. Questions swirled in her brain, but none came to surface and instead she just agreed. 

☆☆☆☆☆☆

 

“Do I look okay?” Dia asked for the thousandth time, tugging at her sleeves. To Kanan, she looked overdressed for breakfast, but knew Dia just wanted to make a good impression. 

Kanan slid behind her, winding her arms around Dia's slim waist. 

“Of course, you look perfect.” 

There was a pause. Kanan shuffled her head round and peppered kisses onto Dia's pale neck. Her lips were soft, and Dia leaned to her touch.

“Is she nice? The she-devil?”

Kanan nodded.

“You’ll like her, I’m sure. She seems quite soft spoken and quiet.” 

Her hands fiddled with the lace on Dia's skirt. They made eye contact in the mirror, and held it silently. Dia's emerald eyes were glowing with badly-masked anxiety and she seemed pale.

Kanan was the first to blink away, looking downwards again to her hands and the lace that was tangled in them.

“Let’s go then, shall we?”

。。。。

 

“Good morning!” Kanan called cheerily as they entered the dining room. Umi and Kotori were already there; both of them stood and turned to face Kanan and Dia. Kanan felt Dia stiffen next to her as Kotori turns round, her large belly exceedingly obvious.

“Good morning, Kanan, and...?” Umi bowed respectfully, before making eye contact with Dia with an awkward smile. Dia ripped her gaze off Kotori after being prompted by Kanan and she too bowed her head.

“Dia. Formerly Kurosawa,” Dia mumbled a little. 

At the declaration of being a former Kurosawa, Kanan watched Umi's brows raise slightly but she seemed to quickly gain control of her emotions. When Dia raises her head, Umi shook her hand respectfully.

“This is Kotori, my partner.” Umi gestured to the heavily pregnant woman who attempted to struggle to her feet. Kotori smiled at Dia.

“It’s lovely to meet you.” 

With a smile so sweet it was cavity inducing, Kotori seemed pleasant. However, the deep gut feeling of jealousy was rooted deep within Dia's core and wasn’t easily overridden. 

Another gentle touch from Kanan later, Dia parroted almost the same words back to Kotori, and they moved to sit down.

Umi was sat in her usual place, so Dia shifted to the seat across from her and sat on Kanan's right, since Nozomi wasn’t present. 

It seemed a little awkward at first while they waited a little for the food, none of them saying a word. Dia didn’t have it in her to start a conversation, not while her envy was ebbing away at her. In an attempt to ease the silence, Kanan brought up some of the activities they have planned.

“You seem like the kind of woman who enjoys sport, Umi.” 

Umi nodded. 

“I mainly partake in archery, but there are others I enjoy too.”

“I see. We planned for a sporting events for tomorrow for the knights, but my advisor encouraged me to invite you to compete with me too.” With a smile Kanan leaned forward eagerly. She loved competition.

“Of course! What’s a celebration without a bit of competition!” Kotori clasped her hands together, “Umi loves competing! Don’t you, love?”

Umi seemed to redden slightly as her wife spoke up for her but she nodded.

It only took that small gesture and the conversation began to flow easier. After that, Dia was much less tense and allowed herself to get involved a little more. Leaving their partners to chat sports, Dia leaned to speak to Kotori.

“How far along are you?” She asked, eyeing the bulging stomach beneath Kotori's dress. Kotori didn’t hesitate.

“Well, I’m supposed to be due within the next two weeks,” Kotori lowered her voice, “Umi didn’t want me to come, she said a journey like this was too much while I was this far along.” 

Dia eyed her. There was a glint in Kotori's eye that unsettled her. It was sharp, piercing and gave off a really uncomfortable vibe.

“Of course, she was wrong.” Kotori chuckled, closing her eyes with a head tilt accompanying her smile. Dia shuddered a little.

There wasn’t much time to chat for longer as the breakfast bell sounded, and servants began to wheel carts of food in. Kanan nodded in approval and they set it out on the table. 

A creak signalled the opening of the door, and the blur of purple hair showed it was Nozomi. Eli followed behind at a respectable distance, not wanting to seat herself at the table uninvited. 

“My apologies for being late.” 

Kanan nodded at Nozomi before turning to Eli.

“Ayase, you’re welcome to join us too.”

Eli thanked her before taking her seat next to Nozomi. It was a little surprising to see that Mari hadn’t made it to breakfast - with it being her favourite meal of the day Kanan was a tad concerned. She tried to make eye contact with Nozomi but her advisor was either oblivious or was intentionally ignoring her. Kanan suspected the latter. Kanan drew her attention from Nozomi and instead turned to Umi and Kotori.

“Where are your servants?” Kanan questioned.

“I sent Riko to help in the kitchen and Hanamaru should be with her, I thought that if they were here they might as well be helpful.” Umi said.

“It’s fine, they can join us at the table.” Kanan commented before gesturing to one of her servants, “They’re welcome here as guests too.”

Umi seemed a little hesitant, but agreed. 

Hanamaru and Riko were bright for the kitchen and seated at the table. Both seemed nervous about being in front of such an important person and avoided eye contact with Kanan.

“Thank you for your generosity, zura.” Hanamaru smiled, seemingly less nervous than her red headed companion. Riko nodded and stuttered out a greeting. They sat a little further down the table, not too close to the royalty.

“Riko is going to be playing the piano for us later, Nozomi.” Kanan commented to her advisor. Nozomi looked down the table while Riko reddened at the sudden attention on her.

“I see,” Nozomi smiled widely, “I’ll make sure its properly prepared.”

Breakfast finished without any problems, and afterwards as they basked around the table with full stomachs, Kanan suggested that she took them on a tour of the palace. Kotori seemed delighted with the invitation and Umi accepted it enthusiastically.

“A walk after breakfast is always something we enjoy!” Kotori exclaimed happily, leaning into Umi with an affectionate smile.

“Riko, would you like to accompany me to the piano room? You can practice a little and get used to it if you’d like.” Nozomi asked the redhead. After a brief glance at Hanamaru on her left, for the first time since arriving, Riko’s face broke into something a little happier than her normally nervous polite smile.

“Yes plea- oh! Um...” Riko quickly restrained herself and turned to Umi, “May I accompany Nozomi-san to the piano room please?” 

Umi nodded, with a gentle smile on her face.

“Of course, that’s why I asked you to come.” 

☆☆☆☆☆☆

Riko was terrible in the kitchen. Working in there definitely was not one of the best ideas. From knocking bowls off the sides and dropping dishes full of food to burning cakes and undercooking chicken - it really wasn’t the best job for her. But despite her endless mistakes and incompetency, miraculously she hadn’t been fired. Mainly because as soon as the kitchen manager noticed her hopelessness around the food, she was assigned to pot washing duty and was forbidden from anything else. It would do her no good to poison the head of a noble family. Even just washing pots was half a disaster 

If it weren’t for her desperation for a job, Riko would have long since quit. She wasn’t particularly liked among many of the kitchen staff anyway.

She didn’t find her true calling until being asked to tidy the piano room one day. It should have been a small, five minute job after a guest had spilled tea on the floor near the huge grand piano. 

Riko had shuffled in with a tiny cart, excusing herself despite the room being empty and then set to work at wiping the puddle up from the floor. It had taken mere minutes for the floor to be returned to its original state, but no sooner had the redhead finished, she felt a strangely powerful feeling towards the large instrument in the room. Leaving her gear on the trolley, Riko had approached it cautiously. With her bare hand she stroked the wooden panels and cover. 

With her heart beating anxiously in her chest, Riko looked around. It was forbidden for the servants to be so touchy with personal possessions of the crown. Not that they played the piano, but it was still technically their property.

Riko just couldn’t help but sit down on the stool. She had never felt herself gravitate towards something so much before encountering the piano. There used to be a player, and often the music could be heard from a distance throughout the palace, especially on special events, but he had since grown ill and the piano had been untouched for many months.

Slowly Riko cracked the lid of the piano open, exposing the white ivory keys against the dark polished wood. 

With a shaking hand, she reached out and touched one. 

The sound it produced made her jerk her hand back. It echoed around the room. Anxiously, she looked towards the door. It seemed nobody had heard her for it remained open a crack.

Again, Riko touched the cool keys. More sounds echoed the room. Gently, she stroked the piano. What she was doing could hardly be called playing, for she had no idea what she was doing. But her hands moved with precision she had never possessed before and danced across and slowly, her fingers were remembering what they had pressed before and developed a type of rhythm. 

Closing her eyes, Riko stopped trying to control her movements and instead let her hands roam freely. 

“Wow... you’re good on the piano.” A voice exclaimed from behind Riko. In her sudden shock, she jumped up and knocked the piano. Obviously, a grand piano would hardly budge from being knocked but the tiny lithe body of Riko, but the sudden impact made the cover drop back down, straight onto Riko’s fingers.

Riko had screamed at the sudden shock, before clamping her good hand over her mouth. Finally the owner of the voice became apparent, and it was none other than Umi herself. Her brow had creased to a frown and she bit her lip.

“I’m so sorry... I didn’t mean to startle you...” 

Tears were dripping down Riko’s cheeks and she desperately tried to yank her trapped fingers from under the cover. 

“I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to touch the piano! Please don’t-“

“Calm down, don’t get so panicky.” 

Umi lifted the cover to free Riko's fingers and the redhead snatched them up and cradled them, but not before Umi saw the redness and bruising already forming.

“You need them looking at, I’ll walk you to the medical bay.”

Riko desperately shock her head.

“They’re fine!” She squeaked and tried to make her way back towards the trolley.

“T-that’s an order...”

Riko froze. Umi's voice was uneasy and weak, as if she was unsure of the own power she had been given.

With Umi's father growing more and more sick, the cobalt haired girl had been taking on more responsibilities. Although she was a hard worker with a level head, she wasn’t good with attention on her and tried to avoid ordering the staff around.

Reluctantly, Riko had followed the young princess to the medical bay.

The two of them walked to the sick ward slowly, the tears in Riko's eyes had dried up, but the throbbing in her fingers had only increased.

So it turns out, Riko had broken three fingers. This handicap rendered her useless in the kitchen for weeks and instead had been directed to help other servants out - one of which was Hanamaru, which was why they had grown close. Helping the younger girl out with her duties to Kotori, they had gotten on well together.

Having learned of Riko's piano ability, Umi had organised for a new piano player to play the grand piano. During these weekly session, Riko was allowed time with him to get a feel for the piano and he taught her many things, despite her only being bale to use one hand temporarily.

As her fingers healed, she was sent back to the kitchen - though this time with special privileges. Every few days she was allowed time in the piano room, away from the kitchen and she spent a lot of her free time in there too. She soon grew into a strong player.

But because of the break to her fingers, Riko's left hand didn’t always react how she wanted it to, it was more clumsy and sometimes 'stuttered' on the keys. This left her anxious when performing and worried about making mistakes. How Umi had managed to persuade her to come and perform for the Matsuura ruler was beyond her.

☆☆☆☆☆☆

The piano in the Matsuura palace was somehow a lot more grand than Umi's. Intricate patterns and carvings were on the legs, with small dolphins swimming around the wood. Riko was delighted with it, and struggled to hold herself back from dropping right down and playing it.

Nozomi grinned widely and gestured for her to sit down.

Gladly, Riko took the seat. There were sheets of music on the stand, although they were slightly dusty as if they’d been untouched for a while. She examined the music.

“Kurosawa-san and the Kurosawa princess play the piano,” Nozomi said to answer the unspoken question, “Dia's been too busy recently to play, and Ruby hasn’t been having music lessons, so it’s not been used. Feel free to play your own music.” 

Nozomi failed to mention Ruby hadn’t been having music lessons because she simply hadn’t turned up for them. It was well known that playing the piano was frustrating for Ruby; she had little talent for it and struggled keeping in time with the beats and lost where she was on the board multiple times. So she skipped it.

Digging in the pocket of her white servant dress, Riko pulled out a well-folded piece of paper. It was a little stained and torn, but once it had opened to fully reveal itself, Nozomi could make out musical scores dancing across the page.

Nervous at being watched, Riko twitched nervously and wiped her sweaty palms on the dress.

Now settled, Riko began to practice her piece.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Sorry it’s been so long. I’ve had some health issues and I’ve just been so busy that writing this fic hasn’t been very high up on my list of things to do. Thanks for sticking with me and things are finally starting to pick up a little. Sorta. 
> 
> Hope everyone had a great Christmas and new year, I don’t really celebrate new year much but I still wish y’all a good one


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sorry this sucks.
> 
> I’ve been trying for the last two months to write this fucking chapter and it’s just not been working for me. Next chapter should be a billion times better because hey I’m better at writing angst.

Touring the palace had seemed like an excellent idea. Not only was it polite, it was also customary and was to be expected. However, with Kotori's swollen feet and her large belly, the ashen haired woman was struggling only mere minutes into the walk. Umi was at her wife's side, arm linked in hers, and Kanan kept the pace slow so they could all keep together. On Kotori's other side, her young servant was steadying her.

Kanan bit her lip. Dia offered an unsure glance - she too was questioning how far they could keep going.

So far, they had merely covered the remains of their dining area and tracked down the main hall to the throne room. Paintings of Kanan watched the group and her heavy crown embezzled with jewels was sitting upon the display stand - she wore her lighter one in her day to day. The two knights on standby didn’t react to the group, but stood alert and ready for any orders.

“Shall we take a small break?” Kanan suggested. Some of her entertainment rooms were nearby; they could call for some tea and continue the palace tour after Kotori had rested.

While she was incredibly proud, Kotori was no fool. Everything hurt and she could barely feel her feet in her shoes, but she wanted Umi to get the palace tour they had talked about. It was important.

“No, we can continue.” Kotori said, a little bluntly. Umi frowned.

“Kotori,” Umi squeezed her arm gently, “let’s just rest a little, okay?”

Hanamaru nodded.

“You don’t want to stress the baby out too much by pushing yourself, zura.” She chipped in, smiling gently at Kotori.

Dia and Kanan looked on at the three, and hoped Kotori would agree to a rest - it felt like they were forcing a pregnant lady to trek around the palace otherwise.

“Okay....” Kotori agreed with a pout.

Kanan led them through to one of her entertainment rooms. It was quite small in comparison to most, and in the centre a table with cushions surrounding it had been placed. By the time they had reached it, Kotori was breathing heavily as she stumbled through the doorway. Umi and Hanamaru were quick to have her seated. 

Kanan beckoned to one of her servants that had follows the group.

“Bring us some tea please, and some snacks.” The servant nodded and then headed to the door. Now settled next to Umi and Kotori, Kanan smiled at Dia. She gave a weak smile back.

“Ahh, your feet! They’re so swollen! You should’ve said something sooner... Kotori-san.” Hanamaru exclaimed. She dropped to her knees after being stood behind Kotori and tried to grip one of her feet.

Kotori pushed her away.

“They’re fine!” 

Hanamaru furrowed her brow and moved back to them, slipping the shoes off.

Kotori went to make another remark, but Umi held her arm gently and rubbed her fingers into Kotori's skin, hoping to relax her a little. Kotori went quiet and allowed for herself to be pampered a little. 

It wasn’t long before some tea and snacks arrived, and Kanan And Umi were encouraged to leave the room to continue the tour. Kotori seemed especially forceful towards Umi. Kanan was rather eager to finish the tour anyway.

[ BREAK]

“I see, so this is where the Knights are staying?” Umi asked curiously, pointing towards the barracks. Kanan nodded.

“We can take a closer look if you like? It’s right near the stables anyway.”

“No it’s fine, we can just head to the stables. I can’t imagine them being very different from my own anyway.” Umi retorted. She was rather anxious to get back to Kotori. It wasn’t that she didn’t trust the Matsuura servants, Dia and Hanamaru but with Kotori being so far into her pregnancy she didn’t like leaving her for long periods.

With the quest to the barracks abandoned, the two of them headed towards the stables. They too, like everywhere else in the grounds, where large and grand - not long since been built. The doors were a dark oak which contrasted the white paint on the walls nicely and the stables stretched far as many horses had to be kept inside. 

Coming off the stables, there was a large grazing area, in which a few horses were nibbling at the grass. To the other side, there was a training field. Equipment was stashed nicely to one side, and in the centre of the field there was a figure making off on a white horse. 

Kanan narrowed her eyes and squinted to make out who it was. Umi seemed rather interested too, so the both of them made their way around the stables and to the training area. When they got closer, Kanan realized the rider had a wild crop of blonde hair and a joyful expression on her face as she cantered round: it was Mari.

The horse she was riding was Starbright, a gorgeous white mare with sound temperament and brains as good as her looks. Starbright had been a gift from Kanan to Mari when they had first toured the grounds together - Kanan thought having a horse would help Mari find something to do and ease her through her rehabilitation after the accident. 

As soon as Kanan came into Mari's view, the blonde exclaimed an overexcited greeting and cantered towards them, coming to an abrupt halt when they got close enough. Mari flung herself off the horse, nearly landing on top of Kanan. 

“Kanan! I wasn’t expecting to see you here!” Mari said excitedly, her yellow eyes glittering with happiness. Kanan found herself a little lost to answer; Mari looked completely adorable in her purple riding hat and matching safety vest (Kanan had those specially made for her once Mari expressed an interest in riding Starbright, as well as a matching rug and head collar for the horse). 

Kanan snapped back to reality when she felt Umi's gaze piercing her and Mari. They were certainly close together, so Kanan tried to shrug off Mari's hug and moved herself back a bit - but the blush on her face could not be hidden.

“U-Umi, this is Mari, she’s staying in the palace for a little while. Mari, this is Sonoda Umi, leader of the Sonoda clan and joint leader of the alliance between our two families.” 

Mari seemed to freeze a little and her movements became a little stiff.

Umi seemed to study Mari carefully, but offered her a hand. Mari took it and gave it a firm shake.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you!” She smiled, showing her teeth. 

There was something ticking behind Umi's eyes and Kanan didn’t like it. On the surface, Umi was just as polite and respectful as she had been with anything else, but there was an undertone to her demeanour that gave Kanan a powerful urge to get Mari away from her.

“Are you still riding?” Kanan asked. Mari shook her head.

“I was just going to head in, but Starbright needs a wash and her feet picking.” Mari smiled nervously, turning back to her horse. Starbright whinnied impatiently.

“I see. We will see you later then,” Kanan murmured, allowing Mari to leave the two. Umi's expression was well guarded and she didn't say anything else on the matter, and the two of them headed back in with little issue.

[BREAK]

The rest of the day progressed fast, with Kanan not spotting Mari again at all. She didn't even come down for dinner. Speaking of dinner, that too was uneventful. Kotori had managed to eat a little, but was obvious rather uncomfortable and tired. Everyone was quite distant, apart from Ruby and the Sonoda servant she had begun chatting to.

Once the meal was over, the group had moved to the entertainment room.

Kanan had to admit, even she wasn’t impressed with the acting company that had been hired to perform - and she was easily pleased. She took a sideways glance at Dia who was sitting next to her. Dia's gaze didn't rest on the stage, an actor, or anything Kanan could pinpoint and instead it strayed into space, unfocused. Even just to be polite, Dia could normally pretend to be interested in something but tonight she just wasn’t having it.

Trying to figure out the reason for Dia's sour mood, Kanan thought back to dinner. That had gone surprisingly well; despite Kotori having to excuse herself early. Being so far into pregnancy was definitely tiring: a long journey and staying in an unfamiliar place had taken its toll on her worn body, and she had retreated to bed with stomach pains. Umi had seemed tempted to go with her, but instead she remained put to appreciate the dinner and later entertainment that had been prepared for them.

Since the end of dinner, the royal family, Umi and multiple servants had gathered to watch the play. Ruby had made an appearance and had even claimed she felt much better. Dia had snorted a little at that and told Ruby to not get too ahead of herself.

The small redhead had definitely gotten her worth from coming down from her bedroom to watch the play. The play itself was terrible - no question about it - but Ruby had found herself some companionship in the form of Kotori's personal servant, Hanamaru, who had been dismissed for the evening because Kotori wanted some alone time to sleep.

Overjoyed with finding someone her own age, Ruby hadn't been able to keep quiet for more than a few minutes at a time, before forgetting and breaking out into excited chatter once again. Hanamaru had answered all questions politely, but anyone could tell she too was enjoying the interaction. 

Umi had remained stony-faced and seemingly very involved in the plot of the play. Her eyes never left the stage and she examined the actors and actresses with great detail: she had an eye for creative arts it seemed, and was invested in giving the play a true examination for all its terrible worth. Kanan leaned away from Umi, as to not disturb her analysis as she wanted to do a little investigating of her own. 

Bored with the on stage action, Kanan turned to Dia and gave her a little nudge with her elbow. Dia glanced around, frowning a little, even when Kanan smiled.

“Whats wrong?” Kanan leaned in, softly breathing close to Dia's ear.

Dia shrugged.

“I don't feel very well. My stomach hurts.” Dia muttered, grimacing before continuing, “I think I might vomit...” 

She certainly was pale, Kanan thought.

“You can go to bed if you'd like, Dia. Theres nothing much to watch really, and I'm worried about you...” Kanan murmured. 

Dia looked as if she was about to argue, but held her tongue. There was something seriously wrong if Dia was about to give in so easily. With a simple nod, Dia agreed and stood. She seemed unsteady and Kanan held a hand out to offer support.

“See you later, love.” Kanan murmured. With a quick kiss to the cheek, Dia retreated to her bedroom.

[BREAK]

Kanan wasn’t sure if her head was spinning because of the alcohol, or the ungodly level of horny she was feeling. Her pants were tight so tight it hurt and Kanan was somewhat surprised they were still intact. Someone had spiked her drink with a ridiculous amount of aphrodisiac, not only that, but it was also laced with the same potion that gave her the magical dick, thus resulting her hormones going completely out of control. She was sweating like crazy, and she could feel her underwear was positively and undeniably soaking wet. She was struggling to remember how she had in this situation, and only vague memories of drinking with Umi in the later evening surfaced.

Her reputation was at a dangerous risk, because Kanan was fighting a loosing battle to keep her hands from roaming downstairs. With each step the movement of the fabric rubbed against her erect member and Kanan found she was somehow getting more and more turned on - previously believed not possible.

She struggled down the hallways, groaning and grunting as she walked.

Kanan wasn’t sure if she would make it to her bedroom, even if she did, Dia said she felt sick? It wouldn’t be fair to even attempt to make love with her feeling unwell and that was something that would weigh on Kanan's conscience.

“Kanan?” A familiar voice jerked Kanan from her desperate thinking, and caused her to spin around, “are you okay?”

Mari was stood there, wearing a light nightie and slippers, a concerned look plastered across her face. Or Kanan thought it was concerned. Everything was so blurry she could barley make out her hands in front of her. Mari tilted her head to look at Kanan, and her gaze drifted downwards until she caught sight of the bulge in her pants, before snapping it back up again to see Kanan's face.

Kanan didn’t wait much longer; she moved towards Mari. Her eyebrows were drawn together and she gazed straight into Mari's eyes. Mari took a step back, unsure of how to proceed.

“Kanan...” Mari's breath was heavy.

For a long second, they just stared at each other, eyes roaming the others body and unexplained sexual tension mounted between the two. They were certainly into each other. From the day they had met, there had been something that had sparked.

Kanan couldn't be sure which one of them moved first, but the next thing she knew they were tangled together in a spaghetti of limbs, and Mari's mouth was attached to her own. 

And she kissed back. Mari's lips were soft and she tasted like alcohol. Had she been drinking? Or was it the remains of her drinks on her own lips that Kanan could taste? She wasn't sure. It didn’t matter either.

Hands heavy and lips barely parted from each other's for more than a few seconds, they both stumbled around together. Mari's hands were in Kanan's pants, freeing her swollen length. Kanan found her hands moving clumsily without her permission, one minute they were on Mari's hips, the next they were gripping her chest.

Kanan's world was darkening. Her vision was so blurred she could barely make out what was going on around her. 

The last thing she remembered, was her back hitting something soft and a strong wave of arousal crashing between her legs

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Sorry again that this sucks but I wanted to get it done because it’s been too long in the works.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! Any feedback would be greatly appreciated! Also please suggest an alternate title for this work because mine sucks


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